Amrit Kumar and Bini Baishya, the founders of a drug rehabilitation centre in Hengrabari area of Guwahati, were themselves former addicts.
Before they became “addicts”, they were normal kids from well to do middle-class Assamese families.
Amrit, a meritorious kid, scored above 90% in the HSLC examination. His addiction to drugs and heroine had started after Higher Secondary. A lot had changed for him in these years. He started smoking in his teen years, and then he took up alcohol, which was a getaway for him to start hard drugs.
"I spent eight years just in addiction," Amrit told G Plus further admitting that he wasted the prime years of life with addiction
His wife Bini Baishya also has a similar story of progressing from cigarettes to hard drugs. Bini maintained her education even though she was binge drinking alcohol every day after coming to Guwahati from Dhemaji and even got selected for a Masters Program at Gauhati University. During her post-graduation, she got exposed to heroin, after which she was not able to manage her education.
"I managed till my under graduation. But after heroin, I used to trip every day and drugs became my priority. I couldn't even complete my degree about which I still feel bad," said Bini.
The duo shares equal struggles of addiction, relapse, withdrawal, and societal ostracism in lieu of their addiction.
But, the story has a silver lining.
"I got a call from a friend one day, who told me, we can't go on like this forever. Let's start our recovery," Amrit reminisced.
This call was important for Amrit in his journey towards rehabilitation. "My friend later died from an overdose of drugs but God was with me and I began my rehab journey," Amrit said.
There were several setbacks and relapses for Amrit but he overcame all of them. Now, he has been clean for the last three years.
Bini too has seen her share of ups and downs. She will complete one year of clean time soon. She credited her relationship with Amrit in her journey towards de-addiction.
"I have only positives from my relationship. At times, I feel like going out and relapse. But, Amrit is the one who holds me," Bini told G Plus.
This was their recovering journey from addiction to rehabilitation.
They went on to start a rehabilitation centre named "Shristi Wellness Home". As of now, the centre has a total of 40 boys and 20 girls, who are undergoing rehabilitation from drugs. They are one of the pioneers of a girls rehabilitation centre, which was actually Bini's dream.
"When I thought I will quit, I also planned to open a rehab to cater to women," said Bini.
Overall, the couple has helped several people in their addiction. G Plus met two of the recovered addicts, Pompi Baruah and Kalyan Deka, who credited the couple in helping them get past their addiction.
"I have been sober for the last five months outside. I have been to several centres but it was only after coming here and meeting my fellow brother that I have been able to finally do it," said Deka.
Remarkably, the couple even welcomes back former inmates to if they feel low again. "Whenever I feel mentally obsessed, I come back here and stay for two days and then I feel good again," Kalyan Deka exclaimed.
Bini and Amrit have planned to further open other centres in parts of Assam, which are also women-friendly. They have so far received no support from the government and are thus mostly dependant on the fees. Apart from de-addiction, they also plan to remove social stigma associated with addicts and especially women.