Imphal, Nov. 28: User Manipur, a group of reformed drug users, is set to focus its attention on Sekmai, a transit point for truckers along the Imphal-Kohima highway, to prevent use of drugs, particularly by young boys and girls.

The group also targets alcoholism among students of schools and colleges at Sekmai, a neighbourhood in Imphal West, known for its high-quality country brew.

User Manipur today opened its first branch at Sekmai to intervene on the issues of drug abuse and alcoholism, by spreading awareness among youths and their parents.

“Manipur is one of the transit routes for drugs smuggled in from Myanmar. In addition to this, banned tablets and syrups are also brought in from other states. Sekmai, a transit point for trucks coming in and going out of the state, has become a haven for drug users and bootleggers,” the joint secretary of the newly-opened branch, Langoljam Inaobi, said.

User Manipur, with its headquarters in Imphal, has a total membership of nearly 2,000 reformed drug users as well as those who are taking drugs at present.

The main objective of the group is not only to prevent the use of drugs but also help drug addicts return to the mainstream.

Citing reasons for focusing its attention on Sekmai, president of the group A.K. Kamad said: “Sekmai has become a hangout for many school and college students. We have reports that even girls in school uniform consume liquor at many unlicensed joints. We want to intervene into the menace.”

The Sekmai branch plans to launch a campaign in the area with support from local organisations and leaders.

“We will check this trend and ask owners of the joints not to provide alcohol to boys and girls. If they continue to serve country brew to them, we will take action against them,” Inaobi averred.

Manipur remains a dry state for more than nearly two decades and brewing of liquor for commercial purpose is banned. However, communities belonging to the Scheduled Caste and the Scheduled Tribe lists are exempted from the purview of the act.

They are allowed to brew country liquor for religious purposes. Taking advantage of the relaxation in rules, some sections of the communities brew liquor on a large scale for commercial purposes.

Sekmai is one of the places that produces high-quality country brew.

Kamad said his group would monitor the functioning of NGOs funded by national and international agencies for prevention of HIV/AIDS.

Some of the drop-in centres opened under the needle and syringe exchange programmes allegedly did not function properly.