Central Health Minister Shri JP Nadda launches capacity‑building programme for medical and allied health professionals in drug‑addiction services

• By 2029 a coordinated, all‑government approach is needed to tackle substance‑use disorders: Central Health Minister
• Effective action against drug misuse requires coordination between health, social welfare and law‑enforcement agencies: Mr Nadda
• The programme aims to train 10,000 service providers by 2028‑29 under the Narcotic Control Vision Document: 2026‑2029
• Mr Nadda launched online training programmes for medical and allied health professionals; released second edition of “Management of Addictive Disorders: A Physician Manual”

Today at Duty Building‑1, New Delhi, Central Health and Family Welfare Minister Shri JP Nadda launched a capacity‑building training programme for medical and allied health‑care professionals involved in drug‑addiction services. The programme was launched in hybrid mode in the presence of the Secretary of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare and senior officials from the Ministries of Health and Family Welfare, Social Justice and Empowerment, and Home Affairs.

The aim of the programme is to strengthen the capacity of health‑care professionals across the country in prevention, identification, assessment, treatment and management of addiction.

Addressing the assembly, Central Health and Family Welfare Minister Shri JP Nadda congratulated the team for developing a comprehensive capacity‑building programme with a structured implementation plan that includes online and offline training for doctors, medical officers, nurses, counsellors and other health‑care professionals. He praised the phased approach to training, involving collaboration between regional and national institutions and subsequent expansion of capacity‑building activities in states and union territories.

Central Health Minister reiterated the Government of India’s commitment, under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, to achieve a drug‑free India by 2029. He stressed the need for a coordinated, all‑government approach to tackle substance‑use disorders, with ministries and departments working in synchrony towards clearly defined objectives.

Mr Nadda said that fragmented efforts and isolated work by various departments had led to gaps in coordination and service delivery. He noted that the Narcotic Control Vision Document: 2026‑2029, issued by Home Minister and Co‑operation Minister Shri Amit Shah, addresses these gaps by defining responsibilities and goals for different ministries and departments. He emphasised that effective implementation requires continuous inter‑ministerial coordination and collective accountability.

Emphasising the role of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Mr Nadda said that strengthening treatment services and boosting the capacity of health professionals and drug‑addiction centres is central to the ministry’s contribution to this national effort. He highlighted the importance of supporting drug‑addiction facilities through appropriate training, institutional strengthening and adequate financial resources under the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment.

The minister stressed that dealing with diseases associated with drug use must extend beyond treatment to include prevention, enforcement and coordinated action against drug trafficking. He underscored the importance of working with law‑enforcement agencies, border‑management officials and other stakeholders. He encouraged health professionals and participating institutions to share practical suggestions to strengthen implementation and address emerging challenges, including those requiring inter‑departmental coordination.

In closing his address, Mr Nadda congratulated the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment and the institutions involved in this initiative. He expressed confidence that this capacity‑building programme will strengthen the availability and quality of evidence‑based treatment services and contribute to the collective national resolve to achieve a drug‑free India.

Speaking at the occasion, Secretary of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare Mrs Punya Salila Shrivastav quoted Prime Minister Narendra Modi, emphasising that as India moves towards becoming a developed nation, it is essential to ensure that young people are physically fit, mentally resilient, confident and free from the harmful effects of drug use. She highlighted the importance of protecting youth from the dangers of drugs for nurturing a healthy, empowered and productive generation that can make meaningful contributions to national development.

She also highlighted the importance of adopting a whole‑of‑government approach to tackle the challenge of drug misuse, and stressed the need for coordinated efforts across ministries, departments and institutions to strengthen prevention, awareness, treatment and rehabilitation services.

Professor and Head of the National Drug Dependence Treatment Centre at the All India Institute of Ayurveda in New Delhi, Dr Anju Dhawan, presented an overview of the implementation of the capacity‑building programme for health professionals treating substance‑use disorders. She highlighted the ordinance of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare under the Narcotics Control Vision Document (2026‑2029), focusing on strengthening treatment services and building the capacity of medical and paramedical staff. She explained that the programme will run through six institutions under the Drug‑Addiction Programme, with NDTC acting as the coordinating centre.

Dr Dhawan detailed the training framework, which includes live online sessions for doctors, self‑paced online modules for doctors, nurses and counsellors, and offline training for selected participants. The curriculum covers alcohol, cannabis, opioids, sleeping pills and inhalants, and also addresses addiction management in specific groups such as women and adolescents.

During the event, Mr JP Nadda inaugurated the online live training programme for doctors and medical officers under the Drug‑Addiction Programme (DAP). He also launched an online self‑paced training programme for nurses, community health officers (CHOs) and auxiliary nurse midwives (ANMs). The Central Health Minister, together with the Secretary of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare and other dignitaries, also released the second edition of “Substance‑Use Disorder: Manual for Physicians (Management of Addictive Disorders)”.

About the Drug‑Addiction Programme

The training programme will be conducted through six central government institutions under the Drug‑Addiction Programme (DAP): National Drug Dependence Treatment Centre (NDTC), MSL, New Delhi (located in Ghaziabad); National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences (NIMHANS), Bengaluru; Post‑Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER), Chandigarh; Central Institute of Psychiatry (CIP), Ranchi; Dr Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital, New Delhi; and MSL A, Bhubaneswar. NDTC, MSL will coordinate the overall implementation of this capacity‑building initiative.

The programme will adopt a blended learning approach with online live training, in‑person training and online self‑paced courses. Online live training for doctors and medical officers will run for 12 weeks, with weekly sessions including clinical case discussions and theoretical lectures. Six selected institutions will conduct sessions together, with a total capacity of 300 participants per week. Individual training will be delivered through five‑day programmes using a common curriculum developed by the participating institutions.

Self‑paced online learning modules will also be made available for different categories of health‑care staff. Doctors will have access to the NDTI‑developed NAAAT online course, while NIMHANS‑developed Addiction Rx application will provide extra support for prescribing treatment‑related medicines. NIMHANS e‑learning modules will be used for counsellors and psychologists, while NDTC’s online course will aid training of nurses, CHOs and ANMs. Upon completion of the training programme, the relevant DAP institutions will issue certificates.

The initiative will involve doctors, nurses, counsellors, psychologists, social workers and other medical and allied health‑care staff engaged in providing addiction treatment services. Participants will be nominated by state governments through the National Health Mission (NHM) and by the central government, including armed forces, central armed police forces and railways. Employees working in addiction treatment facilities funded by the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment will also be covered under this initiative.

Over 800 nominations for online and offline training have been received from various states through the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare and the National Health Mission for DAP institutions. Additionally, about 150 staff from drug‑addiction centres supported by the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment are expected to attend offline training in the next two months. The training programme will leverage the existing clinical expertise, multidisciplinary faculty, academic infrastructure and e‑learning resources of the six selected institutions.

The second edition of “Substance‑Use Disorder: Manual for Physicians (Management of Addictive Disorders)” released during the programme provides doctors with practical guidance on assessment and management of substance‑use disorder. First published in 2005, the manual has been extensively revised to incorporate advances in the scientific understanding of addiction, treatment approaches and service delivery over the past two decades, while maintaining its focus on evidence‑based clinical care.

Designed for clinicians working in specialised addiction treatment facilities and general health‑care settings, the revised manual aims to strengthen their confidence and capacity to recognise, assess and manage substance‑use disorders. It is expected to serve as a valuable resource for strengthening the delivery of evidence‑based addiction treatment across the country and improving access to quality care.

Background

In June 2026, Home Minister and Co‑operation Minister Shri Amit Shah presented the Narcotic Control Vision Document: 2026‑2029, outlining the Government of India’s strategy to tackle the entire drug‑trade ecosystem over the next three years. According to the Vision Document, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare is responsible for capacity building of 10,000 service providers involved in drug‑addiction services, including medical and allied health‑care staff, by March 2029. The ministry’s target is to train 2,000 service providers in the current financial year, 3,000 in 2027‑28 and 5,000 in 2028‑29.

Through this initiative, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare seeks to expand access to competent, evidence‑based, patient‑centred addiction care, strengthen linkages across levels of the health‑care system and contribute to the national commitment towards a drug‑free India.

The programme was attended by Secretary of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare Mrs Punya Salila Shrivastav; Additional Secretary and Managing Director of the National Health Mission Mrs Radhana Patnaik; Director General of Health Services Dr Lavnish G. Krishna; Additional Secretary of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare Dr (Ms) Vinod Kotwal; and other senior officials of the ministry.

Secretaries of the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment Shri Sudhanshu Pant, senior officials of the Ministries of Social Justice and Empowerment and Home Affairs, heads and faculty members of the six nominated DAP institutions, health officials of states and union territories, representatives of the Ministry of Education and central government health organisations, and nominated doctors and allied health professionals participating in the training programme joined virtually.