What the program was
Parul University held the Drug Awareness Program under its Insight Cell on 14 October 2026, on the theme that drug awareness is a step towards a healthier and drug-free society. The programme opened with a lamp-lighting ceremony and an address by the University President, Dr. Devanshu Patel, followed by a felicitation, a drug-awareness video, a keynote, a clinical talk on addiction and a police perspective. The anchor, Jaimin Thakkar, framed the day around a single line for students: choose dreams, not drugs.
The voices on stage
- Dr. Mahesh Suthar, Psychiatrist and Nodal Officer of the Addiction Treatment Centre, SSG Hospital, Vadodara: on how addiction works and how to recognise it early
- Shri Sushil Agarwal, IPS, Superintendent of Police, Vadodara Rural: on peer pressure, the drug trade, reporting and student safety
- Dr. Pawan Dwivedi Keynote address: on India’s young population, digital-age habits and a shared anti-drug pledge
The shared message
The session was aimed at a simple message that says no to drugs and stay away from them. It is for one’s own benefit. The guests asked students to choose their dreams over drugs. The three talks aligned with each other. They said the first use is usually and always social, offered free and tagged as non-harmful. The pressure or to take it, can be short but the impact stays. The addiction can be reversed. It is a treatable condition with symptoms and signs that can be recognised. Doctors say prevention is not the solution of one doctore, one police force or one department. It surfaces out only when students, families and the responsible institutions work together. The president gave a very simple idea that when you have a belief, a habit, it spreads. And the reason is people repeat it, so when someone is responsible, they not only stay away but help others stay away from it.
The anti-drug pledge
Dr. Pawan Dwivedi closed his keynote by leading the hall in a pledge. With their right hands raised, students promised not to consume any kind of narcotics and to do their best to keep their friends free of them. He framed awareness of this kind as the work of the education sector and of young people themselves, rather than something to be left to a government department. Join Faculty of Psychology at Parul University and find the programme that suits your interest such BA in Psychology, or B.Sc. in Psychology or masters.
Also Read: How to recognise early addiction explained by Dr. Mahesh Suthar
