Dope test: Punjab government gives women staff immunity

When Punjab government announced about the 3.5 lakh-strong government staff would have to undergo screening for drugs, later state government on Thursday decided to exempt women employees from the test.

There are 90,000 women employees with state government. Thinking that there will not be right signal sent if they are asked to undergo a dope test. Also, percentage of women addicted to drugs in Punjab was minuscule. It is also declared that employees will be reimbursed the Rs 1,500 they currently pay for the test.

The executing authority state’s health department made it mandatory through proposal to the CMO with guidelines, which have not yet been made public. Where as the budget the government could set aside for the screening and the category of employees to be tested.

About the periodicity of the test, the guidelines say that in case of employees required to undergo periodic medical examination (IAS, IPS, IFS and Punjab Police officers and employees), the dope test should be included with the other medical tests.

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And for other employees, if a need is felt to have an annual dope test, it may be prescribed.

Within a week the state’s Personnel Department has been asked to issue the guidelines and the Health Department to lay down Standard Operating Procedure (SOP)

Before when the decision was in process, the Health Department had estimated that the one-time cost of conducting dope test on all 3.5 lakh government employees would be around Rs 16 crore. It had also raised concerns about the logistics of the massive exercise, which would require mobilising the entire health machinery of the state, including all the district-level government hospitals and their staff.

A health department official said, “Since the screening kit for testing a person for 2 psychotropic substances and 8 narcotics drugs costs between Rs 450 to 550 each, we have also sought clarity on whether the government would charge the employees, reimburse them or provide the test free of cost. If they want to charge the employees, we have suggested we should charge them more than our cost as we would be diverting our manpower and infrastructure for screening.”

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