Nivarana anti-narcotic villages launched

'Nivarana', the introduction of anti-narcotic villages islandwide was launched recently as an additional service to the state but under the supervision and support of the state authorities, to reduce the use of narcotics rapidly.

This project will coincide with the 100th year celebration of the National Alcohol and Tobacco Authority in Sri Lanka. We now have one Excise Department for every 5 villages in the country.

This project therefore is taking place in 60 Excise Departments in 300 villages in the whole of the island continuously.

This long-term national project comes in to being as a join venture project with the National Alcohol and Tobacco Authority, National Dangerous Drug Control Board, Police Department, Customs Department, Legal sector, District Secretaries, Provincial Secretaries, Volunteer organizations, religious leaders, policy making leaders and district and provincial anti-narcotic programmes.

The Commissioner General Excise Wasantha Kapuarachchi, Deputy Commissioner of Excise A Bodaragama and Assistant Commissioner of Excise North Western Province, shared their ideas on this concept recently with the press.