Rising Drug Abuse In India

The rising misuse of narcotics and psychoactive substances is a global phenomenon and India is not exception to this phenomenon. The younger generation is particularly affected by the rising instances of drug addictions. Earlier it was considered as a behavioral problem and seen with the lens of criminality and security. With changing times and development of new techniques of study in social sciences, it is now being seen as a social issue.

Drug addiction and abuse negatively affects individual, the family and also the society. It also has Economic Repercussions due to decline in productivity, increased health expenditure, rising mortality, as well Social Repercussions due in the form of increased crime rates and strained relationships. The pandemic has exacerbated the drug problem, which is reflected in the massive quantities of drugs seized during the pandemic.

Extent of Drug Abuse in India

• According to Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, alcohol is the most common psychoactive substance used by Indians. Use of alcohol is considerably higher among men as compared to women. Nearly 6 crore people suffer or need help because of harmful alcohol use which is one in every three alcohol users.
• Cannabis and Opioids are the next commonly used substances in India. It includes cannabis, opium, heroin and a variety of pharmaceutical opioids. More than 60 lakh people in India suffer from Opioid use disorders. Nearly 4.5 lakh children and 18 lakh adults are in need of medical intervention as a result of use of inhalants and sedatives.
• The top five states where the drug use related problems are widely prevalent include Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Punjab, Andhra Pradesh and Gujarat. Unfortunately 1 one in 20 drug addicts gets access to treatment.

Why Drugs Abuse is Rising?

• It has been reported that among the young people, there is lower perception of drug use risks.There is an urgent need to close the gap between perception and reality of using drugs, to educate young people and safeguard public health.
• The youth and adults have easy access to drugs through private drug markets on the dark web and other such channels. It is estimated that the dark web sale of drugs is at least $315 million annually. Sale of drugs on the dark web has increased fourfold between 2017 and 2020.
• Rapid technological innovation, combined with the agility and adaptability of those using new platforms to sell drugs and other substances has resulted in a globalized market where drugs are available and accessible everywhere.
• There has been an upsurge in the use of contactless drug delivery to the drugs user, which has been fuelled by hidden channels.
• The COVID-19 crisis and lockdown has pushed many Indians into extreme poverty, and has greatly increased unemployment and inequalities and mental health conditions are also on the rise worldwide and underlying socioeconomic stressors have accelerated demands for drugs.
• The bumper harvests of opium in Afghanistan for the last few years have given rise to increased supply of heroin in India, which is sandwiched between the 'Golden Crescent' and the 'Golden Triangle', the major opium production regions in the world.

Effects of Rising Drug Abuse

Economic Effects

• Costs of Healthcare: Drug abuse greatly affects a person’s health. Economically, it manifests itself in prevention and treatment costs, health-care and hospital costs, increased morbidity and mortality. Deaths as a result of drug abuse are a major source of concern. Substances commonly associated with drug abuse-related deaths are cocaine, heroin etc.
• Spending on Social Services: It requires the government to dedicate resources in social protection programs related to abuse prevention, education, interventions, treatment and rehabilitation. Many drug abusers are unable to pay the costs of care by themselves and have no insurance protection. The government needs to make provisions for social protection, putting strains on limited resources.
• Labour Productivity: Drug abuse has affected labour productivity. The economic costs of lost labour-productivity run in thousands of crores of rupees. It deprives the country of potential human resources.

Social Effects

• Social Stress and Family: Often factors such as traumatic experiences, harsh discipline, failure to communicate emotionally, social stress etc. results in increased usage of drugs, which in turn affects the families and societies in a negative manner. It results in incidence of poverty, malnutrition, and other such related issues.
• Violence and Related Effects: Rising drugs abuse cases leads to increased violence against Women. It also results in abuse of relationships, instability, child abuse, deprivation of schooling for the child etc. Drug abusers are more vulnerable to risks of sexually transmitted disease such as HIV infection.
• Crime: There is a complex connection between drug use, delinquency and crime. Adolescents are more likely than others to use drugs and indulge in criminal acts. Children are born in substance abuse families are more likely to engage in crime, drug use and delinquency.

Administrative Effects

• Law Enforcement: Law enforcement becomes a difficult task due to increasing incidences of crimes related to drug trafficking and abuse. Weak law enforcement results in corruption and threats of radicalization of the youth.
• Stress on Criminal Justice System: Criminal justice system is strained due to rising number of cases. It also leads to increase in criminal justice costs, due to criminal investigation, prosecution, rehabilitation etc.

Possibilities and prospects

• Scientific evidence-based treatment needs to be made available for people with Substance use disorders at an adequate scale. A conducive legal and policy environment is needed to help control drug problems.
• Evidence-based substance use prevention programmes are needed to protect the young people.
• Effective enforcement of substance abuse policies like tobacco control act can efficiently curb access of these products to adolescents.
• Regular parental monitoring, supervision, and enhanced child-parent communication can act as preventive measures towards substance abuse.
• Efficient parent training with family skill building and structured family therapy can prevent illicit drug use.
• Strengthening the rehabilitation and other health infrastructure to ensure quality care to drug addicts and re-integration in the society.