nrupatunga
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Hooked and High: Punjab chokes under chemical cloud
According to several independent studies and surveys, more than 70 percent of the state's population in the 15-35 age group has problems related to drugs. Studies have revealed that drug users in Punjab start as early as 13.
A household survey conducted by the UN's International Classification of Diseases indicates that over 60 per cent of families in the Doaba, Malwa and Majha regions of Punjab have at least one addict. In 2010-11, Punjab had accounted for 60 per cent of the total drugs seized in India. Over 7,000 patients undergo treatment in various drug de-addiction centres every year in the state.
It's a huge problem," acknowledges Vini Mahajan, principal secretary, department of health and family welfare, Punjab. Mahajan says that there are no official figures about the addicts but the figures doing the rounds are "more or less accurate."
You name a drug and its usage is rampant in Punjab, but mainly it is heroin in various forms that is most commonly abused. Cities like Amritsar, Jalandhar, Ferozepur and Gurdaspur are the hub of heroin, cocaine and smack, while Ludhiana, Kapurthala, Moga wrestle with synthetic drugs.
One of the key reasons for this enormous social problem is, as Mahajan points out, the easy availability of drugs. Heroin packets are often hurled across the border from Pakistan into bordering villages. Border areas are heavily manned by the Border Security Force, yet drugs are smuggled in copious amounts every year in the state
Punjab has been a transit point for drug smuggling from Afghanistan via Pakistan, but never before have the drugs actually stayed in Punjab, says a BSF official. "In the last few years, cross-border civilian movement has increased in Punjab and drugs are easily smuggled in," he says.
From Afghanistan, heroin is bought at Rs 1 lakh per kg and through Pakistan it is smuggled into Punjab and sold for about Rs 30 lakh per kg. From Punjab it reaches various parts of the country and is sold at approximately Rs 1 crore per kg. A gram of heroin can be procured at Rs 1,000, while a gram of smack costs Rs 300.
Drugs like heroin and smack aren't the only problem in the state -- a large number of people get their daily fix from medicine shops. Cough syrups like Corex, Phensedyl or tablets like Proxyvon and Diazepam are easily available over-the-counter, and at the de-addiction centres doctors note increasing addiction to these common medications. Youngsters inject drugs like Coaxil directly into the bloodstream. It is common to see used syringes in gutters and drains in villages of Punjab.
People often say that two things open early in Punjab -- liquor shops and medicine shops. Drive around Punjab's villages and you will see medicine shops with shutters open as early as 6 am,
