Scheme of Assistance for the Prevention of Alcoholism & Substance (Drugs) Abuse and for Social Defence Services

What is this scheme?

This is a grant-in-aid scheme of the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment that funds voluntary organisations to prevent and treat alcohol and drug addiction and to provide social defence services. In current practice, the programme operates largely under the National Action Plan for Drug Demand Reduction (NAPDDR), through which the Ministry supports NGO-run de-addiction and rehabilitation facilities across the country.

The core idea is simple: instead of the government running every centre itself, it gives grant-in-aid: generally up to 90% of the approved cost, to registered voluntary organisations that run the day-to-day services. The remaining share is met by the organisation. People struggling with addiction then receive free counselling, detoxification, rehabilitation and follow-up at these centres.

Main features

• Administered by the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment.
• Grant-in-aid, usually up to 90% of approved cost, to NGOs.
• Funds de-addiction, rehabilitation and social defence services.
• Beneficiaries; people affected by substance abuse: receive free services, not cash.

Who is eligible for this scheme?

Who can apply (organisations):

• Registered voluntary organisations, societies, trusts and other non-profit bodies, typically registered for a minimum period (often two years) under the Societies Registration Act, a Trust Act or an equivalent law.
• Organisations with a valid NGO-DARPAN unique ID and audited accounts, that have the staff and premises to run a de-addiction or social defence centre.

Who cannot apply for money:

• An individual cannot apply for a personal grant. A person affected by addiction is a beneficiary of the services, not an applicant for funds.
• Organisations without proper registration, without an NGO-DARPAN ID, or without audited accounts and the capacity to run services are not eligible.
• For-profit entities are outside the scope; the grant is for non-profit service delivery.

If you or someone you know needs help, you do not need to apply for anything under this scheme. You reach out to a funded centre or the helpline directly, and the treatment is free.

What types of centres are funded?

Under NAPDDR, the scheme supports facilities such as:

• Integrated Rehabilitation Centres for Addicts (IRCAs) — residential de-addiction and rehabilitation centres offering detoxification, counselling and follow-up.
• Outreach and Drop-In Centres (ODICs); community centres offering screening, referral and a safe space for people who use drugs.
• Community-based Peer Led Intervention (CPLI), prevention work with vulnerable adolescents and youth.
• Other de-addiction and social defence services aligned with the Ministry's guidelines.

What documents does an NGO need?

How to apply for the grant

1. Ensure the organisation is registered as a society, trust or non-profit and has a valid NGO-DARPAN unique ID from NITI Aayog.
2. Prepare a project proposal for the centre you want to run, IRCA, ODIC, CPLI or another approved service, with beneficiaries, staffing and budget.
3. Apply online through the Ministry's e-Anudaan / NGO grants portal, uploading the registration certificate, audited accounts, annual report and proposal.
4. The proposal is scrutinised by state authorities and the Ministry; inspections and recommendations feed into the sanction decision.
5. On approval, the grant-in-aid is released in instalments, and the organisation runs the centre and reports on utilisation and outcomes.

How a person in need gets help

• Call 14446, the national toll-free drug de-addiction helpline, for free and confidential counselling and referral.
• Visit an IRCA or ODIC near you; services at government-supported centres are free of charge.
• The State Social Welfare department and the National Institute of Social Defence can point you to the nearest funded facility.

Grant amounts and the exact list of funded activities are set by the Ministry's current guidelines. Because the detailed guideline pages were not accessible to an automated client at the time of writing, organisations should confirm the latest cost norms and application window on socialjustice.gov.in before applying.

How to check your application status

Because this is a grant-in-aid programme for organisations, not a cash-transfer scheme for individuals, "status" here means the progress of an NGO's grant proposal, not a personal claim. An applicant organisation can track it in a few ways.

• Log in to the e-Anudaan / NGO grants portal. Every proposal filed through the portal gets a reference or application ID at submission. Logging back in with the same credentials shows the current stage: received, under state-level scrutiny, forwarded to the Ministry, sanctioned, or returned for corrections.
• Check the NGO-DARPAN dashboard. Since the DARPAN unique ID is linked to the proposal, the DARPAN profile can also reflect which ministries or schemes have an active or closed grant record against the organisation.
• Follow up with the state social welfare department. Proposals typically pass through state-level scrutiny before the Ministry sanctions them. The nodal officer at the state department can confirm whether the file has been forwarded, is pending a site inspection, or is awaiting the state's recommendation.
• Write or call the Ministry's grants-in-aid section. For proposals stuck for an unusually long time without any portal update, a written follow-up (email or letter) referencing the application ID and date of submission to the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, or to the National Institute of Social Defence for training-related components, is the practical fallback when the portal shows no change.
• Track instalment releases separately. Once a grant is sanctioned, later instalments depend on utilisation certificates and progress reports being submitted on time. An organisation should track its own submission of these documents as closely as it tracks the sanction itself, since a pending instalment is often held up by the NGO's own paperwork rather than a Ministry delay.

A person seeking treatment, rather than a grant, does not have any "application" to track at all; they simply approach a funded centre or the 14446 helpline directly, and there is no status check involved.

Common reasons for rejection

Proposals under this scheme are rejected or stalled for reasons that are specific to grant-in-aid applications, not the generic "incomplete form" issues seen in individual benefit schemes.

• No valid NGO-DARPAN registration. A proposal filed without a current, active unique ID from NITI Aayog is rejected outright, since this ID is the base requirement for any central grant. Fix: register or renew the DARPAN listing before applying, and confirm it is active, not just submitted.
• Registration too recent or lapsed. Organisations registered for less than the required minimum period (commonly around two years) under the Societies Registration Act, Trust Act or equivalent are usually turned down, as are organisations whose registration has lapsed or is under renewal. Fix: apply only once the organisation has cleared the minimum registered age and holds a current, unexpired registration certificate.
• Audited accounts missing, outdated or qualified. Scrutinising authorities check the audited financial statements and annual report closely. Accounts that are more than one or two years old, unaudited, or carrying adverse audit remarks weaken or sink a proposal. Fix: keep annual audits current every year, regardless of whether a grant application is imminent, so recent clean accounts are always on hand.
• Weak or vague project proposal. A proposal that does not clearly specify the type of centre (IRCA, ODIC, CPLI or other), the number of beneficiaries, staffing plan and itemised budget is common grounds for return or rejection at the state scrutiny stage. Fix: model the proposal closely on the Ministry's current guideline format, with realistic, itemised costs rather than round-figure estimates.
• Inadequate premises, staff or capacity. Site inspections check whether the organisation actually has the infrastructure, trained counsellors and staffing to run the proposed centre. A proposal on paper without demonstrable ground capacity is rejected after inspection even if the paperwork was in order. Fix: have the physical space, core staff and any required staff qualifications in place, or clearly funded and committed, before the proposal is submitted.
• Overlap or duplication with an existing funded centre. A proposal for a centre in an area that already has adequate coverage from an existing IRCA, ODIC or similar facility may be deprioritised in favour of underserved areas. Fix: check the existing spread of funded centres in the district or state and, where possible, target genuinely underserved locations.
• Pending utilisation certificates from an earlier grant. For organisations that have received grants before, a fresh proposal is commonly held up if utilisation certificates or progress reports for the previous grant are overdue. Fix: close out reporting obligations on every prior grant promptly, since this is one of the most frequent, avoidable reasons a renewal or new proposal gets stuck.
• For-profit or individual application. Since the grant is restricted to non-profit voluntary organisations, any submission from a for-profit entity or an individual seeking a personal grant is not eligible and is rejected as out of scope. Fix: individuals seeking help should approach the helpline or a funded centre directly rather than filing a grant application.