A 34-year-old farm labourer from Yadgir district in Karnataka has stayed off alcohol for four months and now runs a tea stall, according to a case study released by the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment. The ministry has changed his name to Mahesh Kumar.
Alcohol dependence had hurt his health, his work and his family, and he could not afford treatment. Under the National Action Plan for Drug Demand Reduction, he was treated at the Shri Vaishnavi District De-Addiction Centre in Yadgir.
The 30-day residential programme included medically supervised detoxification, psychiatric and psychological care, counselling, group therapy and Alcoholics Anonymous meetings, along with yoga, life-skills training and family counselling. Treatment, food, stay and training were free.
His tea stall near the Yadgir bus stand earns about ₹12,000 a month, the ministry says, and his children are back in school.
The figures come from the centre and the ministry; the case study is one person's story and does not report how many people the programme has treated.
Source: official release by the Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment, issued through the Press Information Bureau, Government of India (29 OCT 2026 6:47PM by PIB Delhi). Read the full official text: From Recovery To Self-Reliance: A Journey Of Renewed Hope.
How we verified this
VerifiedEvery fact, figure and quotation is taken from the official PIB release (Release ID 2330172) issued by the Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment on 29 OCT 2026 6:47PM by PIB Delhi; checked against the source on publication. Story written by BDT from that release; no outside facts added.
Sources
- 1.From Recovery To Self-Reliance: A Journey Of Renewed Hope — Press Information Bureau, Government of India
