Putin signs school drug-testing law

Moscow, June 8: Russian President Vladimir

has signed a law introducing

testing for school students, the government's legal information website said on Friday.

A recent survey conducted among people aged between 11 to 24 showed that about 25 per cent of them had tried drugs. The average age for the first time to try drugs was 15 to 16 years.

The drug testing will be held in two stages. During the first, socio-psychological stage, students will complete a special questionnaire. The second stage will comprise medical tests and examinations to find traces of narcotic in the blood samples of the students.

The tests will be offered on a voluntary basis. The law will be implemented six months after its signing.

IANS/RIA Novosti