Sanjay Dutt to be Uttarakhand`s anti-drug brand ambassador

Bollywood actor Sanjay Dutt been appointed as the brand ambassador of Uttarakhand’s anti-drug campaign. Dutt, who has admitted to having taken drugs in the past, told Uttarakhand Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat that he suffered a lot in his life because of his addiction.

Confirming the same on Saturday, the Uttarakhand Chief Minister said, “In a telephonic conversation, Bollywood actor Sanjay Dutt has agreed to become brand ambassador of Uttarakhand's anti-drug campaign. He said he himself suffered much due to drug addiction in his life and would like to campaign against it.”

During a visit to Mumbai recently in connection with the upcoming Uttarakhand state summit, Rawat had met Sanjay Dutt. According to reports, Dutt had volunteered to be the brand ambassador for the state’s anti-drug campaign.

Sanjay Dutt’s battle with drug addiction was recently shown in his biopic, Sanju, starring Ranbir Kapoor. The Kapoor scion had played Sanjay Dutt in the film directed by Rajkumar Hirani.

The film showed how Sanjay Dutt destroyed his personal and professional life due to drug addiction, even as her mother, yesteryear actress Nargis, battled with cancer. He got out of the addiction during his stay at a rehab abroad.

Six northern states - Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, Delhi and Rajasthan, and also the Union Territory of Chandigarh have worked out a joint strategy to fight the drug menace.

A massive campaign to create awareness among youngsters about the ill-effects of drug abuse is a part of the strategy.

The chief ministers of four states, including Rawat and the representatives of two others, met in Chandigarh in August to discuss the strategy, where it was decided that they would meet every six months to monitor the progress of the campaign.