SHILLONG, Jan 23: Winter camps have found inroads into East Jaintia Hills district inspiring adolescents and youths to cope and refrain from substance abuse at a time when they are arguably more susceptible to this social evil.
The soft skills and well-being winter camps, aptly named “ia ka Mynried” in Pnar, which translates to “for a better tomorrow”, aim to engage local youth in meaningful programmes over the holidays.
The training interventions are designed to address the government’s growing concerns surrounding substance abuse amongst adolescents. The programme implementing agency, Meghalaya-based social enterprise AVENUES, has developed a curriculum that focusses on building confidence, basic communication skills and healthy coping habits against exposure to substance abuse. The winter camps also provide a platform for the students to showcase their talents in an effort to build self-esteem and identify personal strengths.
The training interventions are targeted at students of Classes 7, 8, 9 and 10, and are delivered over a duration of 24 hours spread across six days.
This initiative is sponsored by the East Jaintia Hills district administration through the District Mineral Foundation.
On Wednesday, 108 students of Jalaphet Upper Primary School, 103 students of Tluh Upper Primary School, and 155 students of Narwan Upper Primary and Secondary School were felicitated at certification events held in their respective schools.
East Jaintia Hills Additional Deputy Commissioners Gautam Warjri, and Jacqueline Una Kharpuri, were present as chief guests at the certification events in Jalaphet and Tluh respectively. Block Development Officer (BDO) of Saipung Riwanki Pyrtuh was present at the event in Narwan.
A significant highlight of these certification events was the Wellbeing Pledge taken by the programme participants against drugs and substance abuse.
Some of the participants also took to the stage to share their learnings from the programme, while some showcased their talents in front of the audience. Osakaeme Nongtdu, a Class 8 student of Tluh Upper Primary School, shared her experience from the camps, saying, “I would like to share what I learnt about habits, addiction and peer pressure during these winter camps. I learnt that a habit is formed from something that we do regularly. There are good habits like studying, exercising or helping others which can make our lives better. But there are also bad habits like eating too much junk food or spending too much time on phones, which can harm us overtime. We also talked about addiction, which is when I cannot stop doing something even if it’s bad for me. Addictions often start as a habit but become harder to control. Another thing we discussed was peer pressure, which is influence by friends or others. Positive peer pressure is when friends encourage me to do good like studying or trying a new skill, but negative peer pressure is when others push me to do bad things like lying or trying substances like alcohol or cigarettes. This programme has taught me the importance of building good habits, avoiding unhealthy addiction and choosing friends who encourage me to make positive choices.”
Dao Langstang, Class 10, Narwan Secondary School, also shared his learnings from the programme, saying, “The most important element of this programme for me is Wellbeing. I came to know new terms and their meanings such as substance abuse and coping skills.”
He went on to say how smoking and taking drugs hurt the body and how coping skills such as exercising, music and conversations help to prevent substance abuse.
Itre Dkhar, Class 7, Jalaphet Upper Primary School, shared about the dangers of drug abuse, saying, “Drug abuse does not only affect the body, but also our mental health. As students, we should help raise awareness amongst people who do not know about this issue. We must spread the word to stay away from drugs because they harm us and our future”.
Speaking at the event in Jalaphet, ADC Gautam Warjri emphasised the need to emulate this programme in other parts of the district for the benefit of students who hail from remote areas.
Meanwhile, ADC Jacqueline Una Kharpuri, speaking at the event in Tluh, highlighted the high percentage of substance abuse and children living with HIV in East Jaintia Hills, adding that the district administration is focussing on interventions like the winter camps.
At Narwan, Saipung BDO Riwanki Pyrtuh admitted that the youths of the district struggle with communication and confidence. He expressed gratitude to the team for training the children in soft skills and providing a platform for them to bloom.
The certification events were also attended by the respective Principals and teachers of the schools. The training interventions under “ia ka mynried” winter camps commenced in December 2024 in Khliehriat, and since then, it has reached over 900 students across the district so far. The initiative will extend to more schools in the coming months with the objective to reach over 1,700 youths in the district.
