Vice-President Addresses Nasha Mukt Bharat Conclave in Bengaluru

📌 Summary:

• Vice-President C.P. Radhakrishnan addressed the Nasha Mukt Bharat Conclave in Bengaluru (RGUHS 31st Foundation Day, with the Narcotics Control Bureau and Disha Bodh Foundation), calling for a whole-of-society approach to a drug-free India
• Said substance abuse threatens not just individual health but educational attainment, productivity, social cohesion and national development
• Urged educational institutions, families, healthcare professionals, law enforcement and civil society to act together; "No to Drugs" must grow into a nationwide movement
• Called for greater research in addiction medicine, mental health, behavioural sciences and community-based interventions — "evidence must guide action and research must inform policy"
• Stressed leveraging technology, counselling services and peer-support networks; urged future health professionals to become awareness ambassadors
• Cited the Drug-Free Campus Campaign and e-pledge platform (launched at University of Delhi); administered pulse polio drops to infants on the occasion

🎯 UPSC Relevance: GS1/GS2 (Society & social justice — substance abuse among youth, social empowerment, public-health response and welfare of vulnerable groups).

📝 Prelims Facts:

• Nasha Mukt Bharat Abhiyaan (NMBA) — national drug-free India campaign
• Conclave organisers: RGUHS (Rajiv Gandhi University of Health Sciences), Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB), Disha Bodh Foundation
• Vice-President of India: C.P. Radhakrishnan

🔑 Key Term: Nasha Mukt Bharat Abhiyaan — a national campaign to reduce drug demand through awareness, community outreach, counselling and rehabilitation.