Awareness Generation Programme:

Keeping in view that primary prevention helps to arrest the proliferation of substance abuse to a considerable extent, VES organizes awareness generation programmes through innovative media of communication such as street dramas, street corner meetings, puppet and muppet shows, exhibitions etc. Seminars, workshops and group discussions are also organized for opinion leaders, high school and college students, teachers, local clubs and community members.

Day Care / After Care Unit:

The Day Care / After Care Unit of VES run solely by the recovering brothers extends its services to a number of beneficiaries each day. It holds regular classes on Life Skill Education, Yoga, Physical Exercise and important issues relating to addiction and its recovery process. In addition to these, patients share their personal experiences, try to resolve each others problems and thereby enhance their sense of responsibility and coping skills. A variety of recreational facilities like television, cassette player, carom board, musical instruments are available. Members are provided with opportunities to celebrate a period of sobriety.

 

Programme for Children of Addicts & Alcoholics:

Children of addicts and alcoholics are helped to form a social defence in the community to combat the drug menace and prevent themselves from entering into the drug world.

In the early 90’s when children addicts started registering their names in the counselling centre of VES the agency estimated the dire need of spreading drug prevention message among the kids and teens. A survey conducted by VES reflected that underprivileged children mostly do not have access to nutrition, education, health and proper recreational facilities. In 1992 integrated development programme started for street and working children. VES became partner to UNICEF, ILO, Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment and Ministry of Labour. At present the organisation is catering to 1500 children who really need care and attention so as to become productive youths of the nation. The agency has developed programmes for them which help children to be happy, educated and responsible. Children are put to school and properly taken care of so that the dropout level is under control. Children are made aware of their rights. They have formed their own collective and are the managers of their own programme. Life Skill Education is being provided to them to prevent them for engaging in risk behaviour. They have formed their own collective and are the managers of their own programme. Understanding the parents and employers play a major role in the upbringing of these children. Massive awareness programmes have been conducted to educate the aforesaid groups who at present are taking active part in our programme.

Talent Search Programme of VES helps the agency to identify right children for the right stream. After providing basic education to all children emphasis is given to develop the underlying talents present in each child and they are helped to acquire proper skills in their areas of interest. 

Programme for Women Carers of Addicts & Alcoholics:

• Adult Literacy 
  200 women carers are being educated on three R s (reading, writing, and arithmetic).
• Vocational Training
  Around 100 women carers are being trained on composite house management skills, embroidery and tailoring to enable them to be either self-employed or placed in employment.
• Counselling
  Our psychologists visit different community centres of VES to counsel women having problems with husband and children. 
• Formation of Self-Help Group and Micro-Credit & Thrift Society
  The objective is to promote socio-economic status of women-folk, to enable them develop the idea of saving and understand its need & importance and how interest free loan can be of use to them in time of need.

Workplace Prevention Programmes

VES is regularly interacting with different personnel in different workplaces so as to help the recovering brothers gain and establish a solid footing in their respective work environment. Moreover, the agency is a regular partner of ILO, New Delhi and was identified by the international agency to initiate the Project, "Developing Community Based Drug Rehabilitation and Work Place Prevention Programmes". VES launched its programme at 3 depots of CSTC, West Bengal, India.
The main objective of the programme was to make the key persons of CSTC understand that harsh punishment was not the right way to tackle the problem. To eradicate the menace, policies were developed so that employees could feel free to come out with their problems.

Training and Research:

VES developed a research and training unit of its own, which is engaged in capacity building of professionals throughout and outside the country. Each year, several training programmes are organized in collaboration with the following organisations.

• Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment
• National Institute of Social Defence
• United Nations Office on Drug & Crime (ROSA)
• NACO
• West Bengal State AIDS Prevention and Control Society
• UNICEF
• International Labour Organisation, New Delhi.
• Colombo plan secretariat.

The unit also makes necessary arrangements for in-service training of its staff members. Through this unit a number of research studies have been undertaken. VES personnel have specialized in the following fields.
1. Prevention & Treatment of Drug Abuse and Alcoholism.
2. Prevention and Control on STD/HIV/AIDS.
3. Rights of Child with special Emphasis on Education.

Recently Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment and UNODC (ROSA) have identified VES as one of the Regional Resource and Training Centre for the Eastern Region of India in the field of substance abuse prevention programme. NGOs of Orissa, West Bengal minus Darjeeling town and South Tripura fall under the jurisdiction of VES RRTC.