Sale of whiteners, thinners to minors banned in Delhi
Juvenile Justice Board on Saturday ordered the Delhi government to issue a notification to ban the sale of whiteners, thinners and vulcanised solutions to children below the age of 18 years to check drug abuse. The board further asked the government to assign one de-addiction centre per district, observing that the existing centres in the national capital region are overcrowded.
Taking cognisance of the increasing menace of drug and substance abuse among children in the NCR region, the Juvenile Justice Board has banned the sale of correction fluids/ whiteners, thinners/diluters and vulcanised solutions/sulochans to children below the age of 18 years unless the child is accompanied by parents/guardian, or has a letter from the school authorities signifying their assent to purchase of the same.The government of Delhi has been asked to issue a notification to this effect. The board was hearing the case of a child who has been a victim of substance abuse and has been consuming thinners and whiteners. The order also cited the 2010 notification of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare in which the government had asked to regulate the sale of thinners and whiteners to ensure that they are not used for substance abuse.Expressing it's anguish over the increasing cases of substance abuse, the Board said, " We cannot be a mere witness to this systematic ruination of an entire generation that is gradually succumbing to the grip of drugs."The Juvenile Justice Board has further asked the Directorate of Health in Delhi to work out a plan to open more de-addiction centres as there is a severe crunch at this moment.According to a report by Department of Women and Child Development, Government of NCT as of September 2016, around 19,320 to 27,090 street children were afflicted by this malaise. Eleven percent of the affected, use inhalants such as whiteners and thinners.The Board has further asked the government to boost the number of rehabilitation centres as currently there are only two rehab centers in Delhi with a capacity of 50 each. These centres are housing far more children than their permitted capacity.