Sports and players can play potent role in curbing the abuse of drugs in society was the message put across today by the speakers at an Olympic Solidarity Programme's "Sports Against Drugs" function organized jointly by Nepal Olympic Committee and Nepal Sports Federation against Drugs and HIV AIDS (NESFADA).
"The programme is an effective way for spreading anti-drugs message with the help coming from sports events and players," said Minister of State for Education and Sports Dilendra Prasad Badu at the inaugural day of two day programme to be participated by 35 participants. 

To make their campaign telling and obtain positive results players must make themselves free from drugs, Badu said after inauguration of the programme. 
Though Nepal has strong anti drug laws and has implemented these laws effectively, the current twoday programme may give some insights for the protection of lives of youths and coming generation in the country, said Badu.
NOC President Rukma Shumsher Rana. while speaking at the programme, highlighted the International Olympic committee's idea behind anti-drug measures. 
Rana said that due to fierce competitions and lot of money involved in sports, players have started using performance-enhancing drugs. IOC, in its attempt to make sports free from drugs, has launched several programmes and created a separate medical committee and monitoring committee. 
IOC is committed to contain the drug abuse and believes in the idea "Think positive, test negative."
It has started random pre game sampling programme which had been very successfully excuted during Sydney Olympics.

At the end Rukma said that IOC has won some battles in its endeouver to make all sports events free from drugs but its victory in final was is still at distant future.
NESFADA President and secretary at Water Resources Ministry, Lok Man Singh Karki said that sports can be helpful in producing healthy citizens in the country and it can be helpful in creating awareness against deadly diseases like HIV and AIDs which are mainly caused by abuse of drugs.
He said his organization, NESFADA, had trained 500 sports people against the abuse of drugs and has been organizing various programmes to mark the year 2001, which has been decalred as anti-drugs year by the United Nations.
Speaking at the function UN Resident Coordinator and FAO Representative Dr. Winston R. Rudder said that the programme is one more battle against the scourge of drugs in Nepal.
He said despite nurturing wishful thinking for achieving success, effective strategy, good implementation of planning and timing are essential.
Likewise, NOC General secretary Dhrub Bahadur Pradhan, while delivering welcome speech, sports became alternative way to drugs for youths who have the tendency to relapse into passive works if they have not job to engage themselves. Sports can be a way for producing youths with healthy minds and healthy bodies, Pradhan said.
NOC Member Kishor Bahadur Singh said that the anti-drug message must be taken to the grass roots and its implementation depends upon the programme's participants.
The two day "Sports Against Drugs" programme will wind up tomorrow.