Telangana Governor Leads Anti-Drug Pledge at LB Stadium
Synopsis
The Telangana government held a student anti-drug pledge ceremony at LB Stadium, Hyderabad, on 19 June 2026. Governor Shiv Pratap Shukla administered the pledge in the presence of CM A. Revanth Reddy, Deputy CM Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka, and senior ministers, as part of the state's Drug Free Telangana campaign.
Key Takeaways
Governor Shiv Pratap Shukla administered an anti-drug pledge to students at LB Stadium, Hyderabad on 19 June 2026 .
Revanth Reddy and Deputy Chief Minister Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka were present at the ceremony.
Ministers Duddilla Sridhar Babu , Ponnam Prabhakar , Adluri Laxman , and advisor K.
Keshava Rao also attended.
The pledge committed students to a drug-free lifestyle and to actively prevent drug use among peers.
The event is part of the Telangana government's broader Drug Free Telangana campaign, aligned with the central Nasha Mukt Bharat Abhiyan launched in 2020 .
The initiative is expected to expand to other districts across Telangana.
The Chief Minister's Office of Telangana announced on Friday, 19 June 2026 that the state government organised a large-scale anti-drug pledge ceremony at LB Stadium, Hyderabad, as part of its ongoing drive to combat the drug menace, with students at the centre of the initiative.
Context
Governor Shiv Pratap Shukla administered the anti-drug pledge to a gathering of students at the stadium event. The pledge, recited collectively, committed participants to becoming active partners in the fight against drugs: 'నేను మాదక ద్రవ్యాలపై జరుగుతున్న పోరాటంలో క్రియాశీల భాగస్వామిని అవుతానని' — 'I pledge to be an active partner in the war against drugs, to lead a drug-free life, to ensure that no one around me falls prey to drugs, and to partner with the Telangana government's resolve to build a drug-free society.'
The event was attended by Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy, Deputy Chief Minister Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka, ministers Duddilla Sridhar Babu, Ponnam Prabhakar, and Adluri Laxman, along with advisor K. Keshava Rao and other elected representatives.
Policy Backdrop
The event aligns with the Telangana government's Drug Free Telangana campaign, which integrates student participation into health and social welfare programmes. At the national level, the Nasha Mukt Bharat Abhiyan, launched by the Government of India in 2020, set the policy framework for state-level anti-substance-abuse drives targeting youth through awareness and community mobilisation.
Indian state governments have regularly conducted school and college pledge drives under this broader national framework, with constitutional functionaries and elected leaders lending visibility to signal high-level political commitment to curbing drug abuse.
Stakeholders and Impact
Students and youth are the primary stakeholders of this initiative. By hosting the ceremony at LB Stadium — a prominent public venue in Hyderabad — the state government ensured wide visibility and a symbolic scale to the pledge drive. The presence of both the Governor and the Chief Minister underscores a cross-institutional consensus on treating drug prevention as a governance priority.
The pledge text explicitly tasks students not only with personal abstinence but also with ensuring that those around them do not fall victim to drug use, effectively turning participants into community advocates.
What's Next
The Telangana government's anti-drug campaign is expected to expand similar pledge programmes to other districts across the state. Observers will watch whether this momentum translates into concrete enforcement discussions in the state assembly, alongside awareness-driven outreach. The student-led pledge model, if scaled, could serve as a grassroots layer reinforcing law enforcement efforts against drug supply chains in Telangana.
Point of View
Constitutional priority rather than a routine policing matter. The choice of LB Stadium as a venue signals an intent to project scale and public seriousness. This event fits a broader pattern across Indian states of using youth mobilisation as a soft-power complement to enforcement, a model that gained institutional backing through the Nasha Mukt Bharat Abhiyan. Whether the pledge translates into measurable behavioural or enforcement outcomes will determine if this is a durable policy push or a high-visibility one-off.
NationPress
6 Aug 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
What happened at LB Stadium Hyderabad on 19 June 2026?
Telangana Governor Shiv Pratap Shukla administered an anti-drug pledge to students at LB Stadium, Hyderabad, in the presence of Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy and other senior officials as part of the Drug Free Telangana campaign.
What did the anti-drug pledge say at the Telangana student event?
Students pledged to be active partners in the fight against drugs, to lead a drug-free life, to ensure no one around them falls prey to drugs, and to support the Telangana government's goal of building a drug-free society.
Who attended the Drug Free Telangana event at LB Stadium?
Governor Shiv Pratap Shukla, Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy, Deputy Chief Minister Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka, ministers Duddilla Sridhar Babu, Ponnam Prabhakar, Adluri Laxman, advisor K. Keshava Rao, and other elected representatives attended the event.
What is the Drug Free Telangana campaign?
Drug Free Telangana is a state government initiative to combat drug abuse, particularly among youth, by integrating awareness drives, student participation, and community pledges into health and social welfare programmes.
How does Telangana's anti-drug drive relate to the central government's Nasha Mukt Bharat Abhiyan?
Telangana's campaign aligns with the Nasha Mukt Bharat Abhiyan, launched by the Government of India in 2020, which provides a national framework for state-level anti-substance-abuse efforts targeting youth through awareness and community mobilisation.
