Actor Sanjay Dutt is likely to be named as the brand ambassador for the Union government’s anti-drug campaign, according to officials aware of the development.

“Dutt is an icon, who has spoken about his experience with drug abuse. We felt he will be able to effectively take the message to the younger people on why they should steer clear of any substance abuse,” said a Union social justice and empowerment ministry official on condition of anonymity.

The ministry is mandated to oversee the anti-drug policies and programmes. It has prepared a national action plan for drug demand reduction for 2018-2025 to focus on preventive education, awareness generation, counselling and treatment and rehabilitation of drug addicts.

The ministry has identified 127 high-risk districts for targeted interventions over the course of a year. A formal announcement about Dutt’s role is expected around June 26, which is observed as the International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking.

In February, the ministry released a survey report titled ‘Magnitude of Substance Abuse in India’, in collaboration with the All India Institute of Medical Sciences. As per the report, nationally about 14.6% of the population between 10 and 75 uses alcohol. “In terms of absolute numbers, there are about 16 crore persons who consume alcohol in the country. Use of alcohol is considerably higher among men [27.3%] as compared to women [1.6%],” the report said.

First Published: Jun 18, 2019 07:37 IST