Daijiworld Media Network – Mangaluru
Mangaluru, Dec 10: The first phase of the awareness and drug-testing drive conducted by the Mangaluru city police commissionerate across school and college campuses has been completed. Random checks were carried out in 77 institutions, during which 20 students tested positive for drug consumption.
After taking charge as Mangaluru city police commissioner, Sudhir Kumar Reddy launched a strong crackdown on drug peddling and consumption, especially in college campuses where the issue is reportedly on the rise. Despite objections raised by the management of some colleges, the commissioner directed officials to proceed with random drug tests without compromise.
From June 1 to November 30, random drug-testing was conducted in college campuses. In the Mangaluru South sub-division (Ullal, Konaje, Mangaluru Rural), 1,601 students across 29 colleges were tested, with 8 students testing positive and 1,593 negative.
In the Mangaluru Central sub-division (Bunder, Urwa, Kadri, Pandeshwar), tests were conducted on 1,448 students from 30 colleges; 6 tested positive and 1,442 negative.
In the Mangaluru North sub-division (Panambur, Kavoor, Bajpe, Surathkal, Mulki, Moodbidri), 2,020 students from 11 colleges were tested, with no positive cases detected.
Overall, random testing was conducted in 70 colleges under the city police commissionerate limits, covering 5,069 students, of whom 14 tested positive.
Several college administrations initially refused to cooperate with random drug tests. As a result, police personnel conducted checks around the campuses, during which a few students tested positive. Their reports were shared with the respective college managements, prompting them to subsequently permit on-campus testing.
During off-campus checks, 30 students from 3 colleges in the Mangaluru South sub-division were tested, with no positive cases. In the Central sub-division, 88 students from 18 colleges were tested, with 4 students returning positive results. In the North sub-division, 139 students from 7 colleges were tested, and 2 tested positive.
Police commissioner Sudhir Kumar Reddy suggested that colleges conduct drug tests during the admission process itself, stating that such a measure would send a strong message and help keep campuses drug-free. He noted that some institutions are already following this practice and encouraged all colleges to adopt the same model.
“The second phase of the drug-testing initiative will begin in January. In this phase, only those students who tested positive earlier will be re-examined, along with newly admitted students in various colleges,” said police commissioner Sudhir Kumar Reddy.