DRUG ABUSE | INDIA IN 2020

Children Inhaling Drugs (Image Source - DailyHunt)

Drug Abuse is a major social problem which results in individual’s deviation from proper code of conduct. In turn, it affects the society at large. It has emerged as one of the serious concerns in Indian Society also. Now, India has not only become a transit centre for drugs, but also a large consumption centre too.

Let’s define it first. Drug abuse is the use of illegal drugs (Heroin, Opium etc), or the use of prescription drugs for purposes other than those for which they are meant to be used.

National Studies on Drug Abuse

According to a 2019 report of the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, Government of India, a substantial number of people use psychoactive substances in India. Also, substance use exists in all the population groups, but adult men bear the brunt of substance use disorders. This survey also indicates that there are wide variations in extent of use across different states and between various substances.

Alcohol is the most common psychoactive substance used by Indians. Nationally, about 14.6% of the population (between 10 and 75 years of age) use alcohol - about 16 crore (160 million) Indians. Use of alcohol is considerably higher among men (27.3%) as compared to women (1.6%). For every one woman who consumes alcohol, there are 17 alcohol using men. Also, 1.3% children (10-17 years) consume alcohol. States with the highest prevalence of alcohol are Chhattisgarh, Tripura, Punjab, Arunachal Pradesh and Goa.

After Alcohol, Cannabis and Opioids are the commonly used substances in India. About 2.8% of the population (3.1 crore) have used any cannabis product within the previous year. States with the highest prevalence of cannabis use are Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Sikkim, Chhattisgarh and Delhi.

About 2.1% of the country’s population (2.26 crore) use opioids which includes Opium, Heroin, and a variety of pharmaceutical opioids. Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Manipur and Mizoram have the highest prevalence of opioid use.

 

Indian Youth “High on Drug”

From the conducted surveys, it was found that in Punjab, nearly 75% of its youth are severely addicted to drugs. That's 3 out of every 4 children. Mumbai, Hyderabad and other cities around the country are quickly gaining a reputation for their drug usage; and the population in each of these cities continues to grow. It has woven itself into the deep fabric in our society.

The youth struggle with addiction than ever before. Peer pressure, adolescent immaturity and irresponsible parenting are the three main factors luring our children towards addiction. This lead them to a life of suffering and regret.

According to the studies conducted, 75% of the drug users are from the households which further means that each one drug consumer from one house mainly which is a father. Also children of 14-15 years of age often experiments with intoxicants daily.

 

Special Mention of Kashmir

Prolonged nature of the Kashmir conflict and the resultant trauma caused especially to the youth has largely remained unaddressed. Lack of focused post conflict healthcare services and increased proliferation of drugs from across the Line of Control has worsened the problems multi-fold. The drug addiction has been on the rise for last few years and as of date over 2.5 lakh youth form part of addicted or affected population in the valley. With few mental healthcare facilities or de-addiction centres in the valley, Kashmiris have been left to fend for themselves in case they or their kith and kin get involved in this social and health evil.

A fresh data of the Srinagar police control room’s (PCR) de-addiction centre paints a grim picture. Out of the entire lot, most drug abusers fall in the age group of 18-35 years. While the numbers affected is very high, the patient flow at the de-addiction centre is alarming too. Last year, 633 were registered at the PCR, which has gone up to 1,978. While 81% were male, there were over 19% females suggesting that the number of female drug abusers too is on the rise in the otherwise conservative society.

Youth of Kashmir, faced with the larger issues of lack of education, capability building, unemployment and corrupt practices in the areas related to recruitment for government services, are taking refuge in drugs.

Although the menace is destroying so many lives, yet there are only two drug de-addiction centers in the valley. One is being run by J-K police and another by an NGO which makes it impossible for the treatment and counseling of the affected.

 

Challenges to curb the Drug Menace

Related Data: The findings of the “Magnitude of Substance Abuse in India” report 2019, revealed the estimated 16 crore alcohol consumers in the 10-75 years in the country, as many as 19% of them were dependent on alcohol.

Legally Available Drugs: Drugs such as tobacco which are available legally is ahuge problem which is usually seen as the gateway drug which children take just to experiment with.

Lack of Availability of Rehabilitation Centres: There is a lack of rehabilitation centres in India. Also, NGOs operating de-addiction centres in the country, have failed to provide the required kind of treatment and therapy.

Smuggling of Drugs: This happens through the states like Punjab, Assam and Uttar Pradesh which share the border with neighbouring countries.

 

Effect of pandemic on Drug Abuse

India had seen one of the most severe and completely unplanned lockdowns in the world. It faced a potential boom in drugs usage since millions lost their jobs, with little prospect of finding any alternatives or any savings to fall back on. Experts had warned that these people are amongst the most vulnerable to turn to drugs usage as a way to deal with their hardships.

The other set of vulnerable people are the current users and addicts who have been driven to the edge over the past few months as the lockdown has not only kept the users indoors, but also impacted the supply of drugs. This sent alarm bells ringing in Punjab and Haryana, two of the most hard hit states in the country as high levels of prosperity on the back of booming farming has turned thousands of youth in these two states into drug addicts.

The situation is particularly severe in Punjab, where the Narcotics Control Bureau has identified 18 of the 22 districts as most impacted by substance abuse. For Haryana, the picture is only marginally better with 10 of its 22 districts figuring in the list.

Since the outbreak of the pandemic, Punjab has seen a 23% rise in the number of drug addicts registered with the state government for receiving de-addiction treatment. While in early March, a total of 414,000 persons had registered to receive treatment; another 130,000 have signed up with since the lockdown was imposed, highlighting that the government needs to take urgent action to tackle the issue.

 

Government’s Plan to tackle the menace

On the occasion of International Day against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking (June 26), the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment launched an annual Anti-Drug Action Plan for 2020-21 for 272 districts. The plan includes awareness generation programmes, identification of drug-dependent population, focus on treatment facilities and capacity-building for service providers to curb drug abuse and alcoholism.

 Key Points:

1. De-addiction facilities: These would be set up in the “most affected” 272 districts identified by the Narcotics Control Bureau focussing on building up treatment and de-addiction facilities and giving emphasis on reaching the youth and high risk population. The districts mostly belong to Punjab, Haryana, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh and the North East.

2. Drop-in-Centres for Addicts: The focus will be on setting up drop-in-centres for addicts and also on peer-led community based outreach programmes for high risk populations – particularly the youth. These centres will have provision for screening, assessment and counselling and would provide linkage to treatment and rehabilitation services for drug dependents.

3. Integrated Rehabilitation Centre for Addicts (IRCAs): Funded by the Ministry, IRCAS would reach out to communities to help those affected by drug addiction.

4. Drug-Free India Campaign: The ministry also announced the launch of the ‘Nasha Mukt Bharat’, or Drug-Free India Campaign which focuses on community outreach programmes in the districts identified in coordination.

Also, national level campaigns are planned across schools and higher education campuses to sensitise youngsters, parents and schools about the issue.

 

What we can do!

Merely observing June 26 as the International Day against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking is not enough. To control drug abuse firstly, we should educate our children about drugs and their harmful effects from an early age. Secondly, we should encourage healthy dialogue during adolescence between the children and their parents and teachers. We should take up all measures to check the evil of drug addiction from spreading and paralyzing the society.

 

The action plan undertaken by the Indian Government aims at addiction-free India by countering the growing menace especially across colleges and universities. However, there is a need to design a more targeted campaign against drugs and substance abuse.

Addiction should not be seen as a character flaw, but as an ailment that any other person could be struggling with. Therefore, the stigma associated with drug taking needs to be reduced through social awareness and voluntary processes like medical help by psychologists, as well as strong support from family.

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