MY Bharat NSS Drives Mobilise 96,700 Youth Against Drug Abuse

The Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports reported on 31 October 2026 that MY Bharat and the National Service Scheme (NSS) had carried the call for an addiction-free India onto the streets, drawing over 96,700 participants into cyclothons, walkathons and runs held across the country on 30 and 31 October 2026.

Where the drive fits

The two days made up Week 7 of the 'Nasha Mukt Yuva for Viksit Bharat - 100 Week Sankalp Abhiyan'. The events were organised under the theme set for the campaign's second month, 'Fit Youth, Addiction-Free Youth (Shakti evam Seva)', and ran at more than 200 institutions nationwide. Students, NSS volunteers and local residents came together at public spaces and at well-known civic landmarks.

How the numbers break up

NSS units put out cycle rallies covering 10 to 15 km, along with walkathons and runs of 3 to 5 km. The walkathons and runs together recorded over 23,300 participants, while the cyclothons drew more than 8,000. School units, women's groups and senior citizens joined the walkathons, which the ministry pointed to as a mark of inclusive participation.

Beyond fitness

Volunteers took the message further through street plays known as Nukkad Nataks, slogan-writing activities and songs, opening conversations in neighbourhoods about substance abuse, peer pressure and recovery. The street plays reached over 5,600 people, and the slogan-writing and musical events brought in more than 11,800. Plogging drives folded in a cleanliness angle, pairing jogging and walking along the rally routes with the collection of litter; over 11,400 young people joined these and handed segregated waste to local civic bodies.

The pledge at the end

The two days closed with a collective Nasha Mukt Sankalp in which nearly 26,000 participants and community members committed themselves to a society free of addiction. Youth ambassadors carried reels and photographs of the activities onto Instagram with the hashtag NashaMuktYuva. Through this Week 7 push, the two bodies continued to build youth-led community action towards the goals of a Nasha Mukt Bharat and a Viksit Bharat.