Azharuddin Calls for Drug-Free India at Children’s Day Run

Thousands Join Nasha Mukt Bharat Run in Early-Morning Anti-Drug Drive

Hyderabad, November 14: Telangana Minority Welfare and Public Enterprises Minister Mohammed Azharuddin on Friday administered an oath for a ‘drug-free India’ to thousands of students and urged youth and children to stay away from narcotics and addictive substances. He was speaking at the Nasha Mukt Bharat Run, organised by the Wakeup Humanity Organization at Sanjeevaiah Park on the occasion of Children’s Day.

Addressing the gathering, the Minister stressed that the fight against drugs “must begin with awareness, discipline and collective responsibility,” adding that “the rise in substance addiction poses a serious threat to families, communities, and the future of young people”.

TMREIS President Faheem Qureshi lauded the organisation for its efforts, warning that the “surge in addiction has led to children harming their parents, jeopardising their careers, and endangering their future”. He said even celebrities should come forward to endorse anti-drug campaigns, undergo periodic blood tests, and share the reports publicly to promote awareness and accountability.

Around 3,000 students from various schools participated in the early-morning run, many holding placards declaring “Drugs Have No Religion,” “Don’t Let Drugs Control You,” and “Say No to Drugs, Yes to Life,” as speakers highlighted the irreversible physical and mental damage caused by substance abuse. Several private schools also joined the event.

Iftekhar Shareef, organization’s USA Director and the first Overseas Citizen of India, urged parents to maintain ‘a watchful eye on their children’s activities, whereabouts, and peer circles’. He emphasised that the movement for a drug-free society must begin at home with discipline, adding that Hyderabad’s anti-narcotics enforcement efforts can be more effective only when families take equal responsibility.

Telangana State Minorities Commission Chairman Tariq Ansari also lauded the organisation’s initiative and encouraged students to remain drug-free.

Urging youngsters to steer away from drug-addiction, TPCC General Secretary and Campaign’s Youth Ambassador Mohammed Asaduddin said that “the best Nasha is being healthy, being good, studying well and spreading happiness.”

DSP Narcotics Saidulu, Mal Reddy Rangareddy, VIP International Schools Director Mujtaba Aamir, Congress General Secretary and NGO’s USA President Iftekhar Shareef, legal advisor Syed Wasay, former MLA Mallareddy, senior Congress leaders, religious clerics, and representatives of various schools were also present.

Campaign founder and president of the Wakeup Humanity Organization, Syed Noor, appealed to citizens to remain vigilant, educate their children and neighbours about the harmful effects of drugs, and support the initiative so that the message can be taken “not just across states, but globally.”

The campaign was launched in August 2025 in Delhi, in the presence of more than a dozen Members of Parliament, including Anurag Thakur and Awadesh Kumar, along with several religious and social changemakers. The campaign later kicked off in Hyderabad on Friday morning and will raise awareness through sports runs, rehabilitation initiatives and other outreach activities, said Noor.