General

Gunjan India – to address drug abuse and crime prevention in India

By Denise
Nanni and Milena Rampoldi, ProMosaik. In the following our interview with Sandeep of the organization Gunjan, an
organization founded to address drug abuse and crime prevention in India.

What are the issues
that brought to the foundation of the Gunjan Organization for Community
Development?
The Gunjan Organization for Community Development was established
four years back as a step towards Drug abuse and Crime Prevention. The idea
organized from its founder facilitator Late Shri R.S. Parmar, rehabilitation
activist of district Kangra of Himachal Pradesh. He felt that Correction, Crime
Prevention and Rehabilitation should always be accompanied with compassion and
understanding. This thought has been guiding force of the Organization. Since
2003 with the mission
“To mobilise and harness the power of children,
youth, women and community at large to combat illiteracy, ignorance, gender
discrimination, health issues  and the
evil of drug & alcohol addiction with an ultimate aim of crime prevention
and development”.
it has been actively providing
community services in the felids of Drug and Alcohol Prevention; Treatment of
Addicts and their Rehabilitation; HIV/AIDS Prevention; Empowering Women;
Education of Women and Children and Primarily prevention activities.
Which are your main activities and fields of
activity at Gunjan?
Gunjan Organization for Community Development is
a non-profit registered organization under Society registration Act 1860 in
year 2003 with the objective to address Drug abuse and Crime Prevention.
Following describes the Capabilities, which Gunjan has developed over the 14
years. For more please visit us at  www.gunjanindia.org
  • PROGRAMME AREAS
  • Drug de-addiction
  • Capacity building
  • HIV/AIDS prevention
  • Social networking
  • Disaster Response
    Systems
  • Community Radio
    Station
Programmes
and Resources
  • Regional
    Resource & Training Center 
    (RRTC) North II
    (H.P, J&K, and Chandigarh) funded by
    Ministry of Social justice and Empowerment, GoI:
Organisation
has been designated as RRTC for above mentioned states since 2010 and currently
conducting trainings for more than 120 Drug De-addiction Centres working in
private set up or funded by Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, GoI. We
have resource pool on different issues and in all the four states. Organisation
has its own infrastructure in H.P. and has contract with different
organisations in rest of the states where organisation is conducting trainings
on regular basis. Organisation has its head office in Dharmshala, District
Kangra of H.P. and coordination office in Chandigarh.
  • Community
    Care Centers for PLHIV
    in Hamirpur, Tanda and Bathinda funded by
    Punjab State AIDS Control Society and HP State AIDS Control Society
The objective
of Community Care Centre was to provide therapeutic support to People living
with HIV and AIDS and empower them to lead their life in a positive manner.
  • Drug
    Treatment cum Rehabilitation Centre
    Kullu funded by
    Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment, Government of India.
Drug
de-addiction centre was established with the objective to extend support to the
people under the influence of alcohol and other substances and has become
addicts. Organisation is extending therapeutic support to them so that they are
strengthened themselves to come out that state and mainstream themselves in
society. 
  • Target
    Intervention Project for 400 IDUs
    in Dharmshala
    supported by the H.P. AIDS Control Society.
Orgcanisation
is implementing TI among drug users so that the process of high risk behaviour
for HIV transmission could be reduced to low risk and later on no risk.
Organisation has taken the initiatives for skill development and initiating the
same with help of IL&FS.
  • 24
    Hours Tele Counseling Programme for Substance Abusers & PLHIVs
    self
    funded and recognised by Department of Social Welfare, H.P.
Organisation
initiated this facility with the objective to reduce the physical distance for
those who are in need and does not have information on Drug abuse and want to
know about the existing facilities and sort out their queries  related to the concerned issues. Organisation
is also working as secretariat for District Level Network of Positive People.
  • Childline
    Initiatives with CHILDLINE India Foundation
    and Ministry of
    Women and Child Development, Government of India.
  • Reducing the risk
    of HIV/AIDS among Drug Abusers funded by UNODC
  • Support
    Forum of Concerned Citizens (SFCC)
    that currently has
    60 local NGOs/CBOs and 135 social activists of Himachal Pradesh, Punjab
    and chandigarh
  • Family
    Counseling Programme
Organisation
is taking care of the family members of HIV infected and people under alcohol
drug influence through psycho social 
support so that the family should know their roles and responsibility
and should extend the support to the person who is in need. This centre is also
working as facilitation agency to sort out the confusion and disputes taking
place due to these circumstances. 
  • Organisation has
    developed a reader-friendly web site: www.gunjanindia.org which is
    resource centre for different issues and is being accessed by NGOs.
  • Organisation being
    RRTC North II is asked by Department of Social Security, Government of
    Punjab to facilitate and conduct advanced pilot Survey for drug abuse in
    Punjab which is being conducted in three states i.e. Punjab Maharastra and
    Manipur under the supervision of National Sample Survey Organisation.
  • Organisation has
    conducted a research in collaboration with CUTS International on
    “EXPLORING THE INTERPHASE BETWEEN BUSINESS REGULATION AND CORPORATE
    CONDUCT IN INDIA” which was conducted in four states H.P. Gujrat, Andhra
    Pradesh and West Bengal.
  • RRTC is also
    extending support in conducting the trainings of State AIDS Control Society and
    recently facilitated Blood Safety Training.
How do you promote community empowerment? Do you
carry on any specific project for women/girls empowerment?
The organisation working for all communities
without any gender discrimination. All the projects implemented by the
organisation are focused  on female
communities because , We believe “Woman” is the nucleus of all social projects
and they are the immediate victims / sufferers of problems in any community….
The organisation has done some efforts to establish community based organisations
in the state of Himachal Pradesh. Gunjan has established a network of positive
people (http://gunjanindia.org/programs/networks-and-fourms/)
we  will be happy to share some of the success
stories of people who are in the leadership roles with the facilitations from
the Gunjan… please find attached the (As the files are in Hindi language you
need to take facilitation to study the same) 



What are the health services that you offer to
the local community?
·       
Community Care Centers for PLHIV
·       
Drug Treatment cum Rehabilitation Centre
·       
Target Intervention Project for 400 IDUs
·       
24 Hours Tele Counseling Programme for Substance Abusers & PLHIVs
Sanjeevani Ambulance Service
Do
you cooperate with local authorities and institutions? If yes, how?


Without
ensuring the participation of Government and local agencies all the works done
by any of the None Government organisation has no meaning… Gunjan always ensure
the participation / network with all line agencies to implement any of the
intervention for the communities… Following are the network/ partnering and
program support agencies :
  • Ministry of Social
    Justice & Empowerment, Government of India
  • National Institute
    of Social Defense, Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment,
    Government of India
  • United National
    Office of Drug and Crime(UNODC)
  • Department for
    International Development (DFID)
  • Department of
    Social Justice & Empowerment, Government of Himachal Pradesh
  • CHILDLINE India
    Foundation
  • Ministry of Women
    and Child Development, Government of India
  • Ministry of Health
    & Family Welfare, Government of India
  • National AIDS
    Control Organisation(NACO) Department of AIDS Control,  Ministry of Health & Family Welfare,
    Government of India
  • Himachal Pradesh
    State AIDS Control Society, Department of Health & Family Welfare,
    Government of Himachal Pradesh
  • Punjab State AIDS
    Control Society, Department of Health & Family Welfare, Government of
    Punjab
  • Chandigarh State
    AIDS Control Society, Chandigarh(UT)
  • India HIV/AIDS
    Alliance
  • Infrastructure
    Leasing & Financial Services Limited (IL&FS) 
  • MAMTA –
    Health Institute for Mother and Child, New Delhi