Drug Abuse: Addiction and Consumption in India

 

During my visit to my village last year in summer, an incidence shocked me, and brought me here to research deep into it. It was around 7 in morning and I was cycling in peripheral area of my village, and it was not the first day, I was cycling on same route for one month but this time it was early as compare to rest days. I saw some boys smoking marijuana (marijuana) beside road, I was shocked to see this, people smoking marijuana was not a surprise for me, I was knowing this, but teenagers involved in this and doing it early morning and that also beside road, from where everyone passes at that time. That incident scared me so much that, I never went to that road again early morning.

Marijuana is widely available illicit cannabis drug in India. According to data from India Today website, consumers of marijuana in different states of India are 3.8% in Delhi, 3.3% Himachal Pradesh, & 7.3 Sikkim.

Cannabis Lovers in India

If we look at some facts it is not difficult to understand how cannabis is available widely in India. As of 2000, per the UNODC the "prevalence of usage" of cannabis in India was 3.2%. A 2019 study conducted by the All-India Institutes of Medical Sciences reported that about 7.2 million Indians had consumed cannabis within the past year. The Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment's "Magnitude of Substance Use in India 2019" survey found that 2.83% of Indians aged 10–75 years (or 31 million people) were current users of cannabis products. Cannabis also finds its mention in other historic scriptures like Dhanvantari Nighantu, Sarngandhara Samhita and Kayyadeva Nighantu. It is also referred in Ayurveda as an ingredient in various recipes of pain relievers and aphrodisiacs, but in small quantities.

Bhang is popularly consumed in India, even on some religious occasions and even not consider as intoxicant in many parts of India. According to data from Ministry of social justice Empowerment, 20% cannabis users consume bhang.

If we look at legal status of Cannabis, NDPS (Narcotics Drug and Psychotropic Substances) banned the production and sale of cannabis resin and flowers, but permitted the use of the leaves and seeds, allowing the states to regulate the latter. Uttarakhand in 2016 and Gujarat government later, legalised the cultivation of Cannabis for industrial and medical purpose.

Opium or Heroine and it’s routes in India

As we have seen that how cannabis is widely grown and consumed in India, but now let’s have a look on consumption of other drugs, which are imported in India, breaching the security. According to data from India today, opium and heroin consumers are 2.8% in Punjab, 6.9 in Mizoram, 2.3 in Delhi.

Drug production impacting Indian states place in two main regions: the “Golden Crescent”, comprising illicit opium production areas in Iran, Afghanistan and Pakistan; and the “Golden Triangle”, the second largest opium production region in the world, covering Myanmar, Thailand and Laos. While heroin produced in the Golden Crescent is trafficked through the Southern Route.

If we look at some recent incidence of drugs seize, two days ago, custom seized 102kg drugs worth Rs 700 crore in consignment from Afghanistan, at Amritsar. And two weeks ago, The Customs Officers at the Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport seized 5.85 kg of cocaine on Thursday, the biggest seizure at any Indian airport. Different methods are used to hide drugs from security on airport like, some of the passengers pack the drugs inside latex capsules, which are then swallowed by them in order to get past Customs officers easily at the Airport. Another method is the drug is concealed in specially made cavities in the hand-baggage or checked-in baggage being carried by the passengers.

Even after increase in securities among borders and airports, peddlers dare to import drugs in India, these are the cases where they get caught than, let’s imagine how much amount of drugs are bought and sold in India.

Addiction and Solution

People don’t realize the harmful effects of drugs at initial stage, they enjoy it, unaware of the fact that how it’s affecting every organ of body. It is necessary that people consuming drugs should be made aware of its harmful effects and treatment should be provided at initial stage. If treatment is not provided on time, this addiction may damage their physical and emotional health. And social life of a person may come to an end.

 As a member of society to help people around us to get out of this, if we know someone trapped in this, first we should handle them with love and care, someone elder need to be inform, and person should be brought under guidance of experts in rehab centers across country.

One can visit to this website for helpline and other information regarding rehab centers- https://indianhelpline.com/De-Addiction-Helpline/