Valley to get de-addiction centre at SMHS

Govt scraps similar plan for Psychiatric Diseases Hospital

Srinagar, October 18: The two-decade-old on-going turmoil in Kashmir has not only brought the economic sector to its knees but has also posed a serious threat to the present generation who has found it difficult to live in a conflict environment. The Valley has witnessed an epidemic in drug addiction, not only among the youth, but also school-going children and young girls, doctors say.

Currently, the Valley has only one de-addiction centre at the Police Control Room, Therefore, the government has decided to establish another de-addiction centre at Shri Maharaja Hari Singh Hospital (SMHS).

“We used to have a single rehabilitation centre in the Valley and the whole Valley was dependent on it. Now, we have to open 32 de-addiction wards in SMHS Hospital,” said Psychiatric Diseases Hospital’s HOD Dr Mushtaq Margoob.

He added that within the next two months, we will open another rehabilitation centre at the SMHS Hospital.

Earlier this year, the government had sanctioned funds for a rehabilitation centre in at the Psychiatric Diseases Hospital in Rainawari. “There was a proposal given by State Government to establish rehabilitation centre in Rainawari but the environment for such patients should be different. They will get depressed in that environment,” said an official from SMHS.

He further added that was the reason the government decided to move that project to SMHS.