THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: With substance abuse among minors emerging as a growing concern, lack of dedicated rehabilitation centres for children and adolescents are becoming a huge challenge in Kerala. There are only two government-aided centres for children in the state and both these facilities are unable to cater to the increasing number of cases being reported. These facilities are yet to get the promised grant from the government.
As per the data released by the Excise Department, as part of the Vimukthi project, the number of children coming to Vimukthi centres have gone up in recent years. In 2024, around 2,880 children were treated at Vimukthi de-addiction centres. This year, as many as 588 children sought treatment as of February in Kerala.
The state government decided to open two centres jointly with NGOs exclusively for children back in 2021 under the National Action Plan for Drug Demand Reduction (NAPDDR) by the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment. The Samrudha Care Centre for Children in Changanassery is the facility for boys and since its launch, this 25-bedded facility has treated around 260 children.
T M Mathew of Samrudha Care Centre for Children said that, “We are getting umpteen number of calls everyday. All beds are occupied. Many children are coming here with a history of multiple drug abuse and it takes time to recover,” said T M Mathew. He said that the government owes grants to the tune of over Rs 1. 5 crore to the facility.
“At present, Changanassery Archdiocese and Changanassery Social Service Society are advancing the running cost. Apart from the grant received when we launched, the government hasn’t released the grant,” said T M Mathew.
These centres offer three months of regular counselling, medication, yoga, sports, arts therapy, personality development classes and group therapy to help children regain their lives from addiction.
Director Father Joseph Parecattil of Nirmal Nikedhan Mukthi Sadan, de-addiction centre for minor girls, said that they are unable to cater to the growing demand for rehabilitation among children. “We are offering treatment for girls above 10 years of age. We have only 20 beds and we have treated around 360 children since its launch. Now people are more aware of drug abuse and hence the number of enquiries have gone up,” said Father Joseph. He said that the government owes around `1.28 crores as grant to the institute.
Meanwhile, an official of the Department of Social Justice said that the state is unable to claim the grant from the Centre owing to technical reasons. “We have already taken up this matter with the Centre. In the recent meeting, we raised this issue as rehab facilities for children is becoming the need of the hour,” said the official.