Paradise lost to drug abuse

Drug addiction in Kashmir has received scant attention 

 Tanveen Kawoosa, Srinagar
As you drive past the dusty and arid road leading to Tulkhun village, about 7 km from Bijbehara in the southern part of Anantnag, the pretty landscape belied an insidious malady. Astoundingly beautiful Tulkhun is one of the core areas of Anantnag afflicted with drug addiction.

In this remote hamlet, 19-year-old Rafeeq (name changed) looked forty. A sumo driver; Rafeeq was addicted to narcotics when he was in school. As a teenager, he began with Corex, decongestant syrup, and graduated to Phuki, a concoction of a powder obtained from locally available poppy plants and water.

It's been seven years and Rafeeq has still not been able to kick the addiction. Most of his earnings go to feed this habit. Worse, his younger brother Yusuf, too, has taken to drugs. There are many Rafeeqs and Yusufs in Kashmir grappling with the menace of addiction. Unable to give up drugs, health of these young boys degrade, mentally and physically. Over a time, the manifestations get serious, even life-threatening.

Surprisingly though, drug addiction in Kashmir has received scant attention. The affliction has taken root for more than two decades now. Drugs continue to ruin hundreds of thousands of people in Kashmir. Anantnag and Baramulla districts top the charts for having a large chunk of people suffering from drug addiction. Data provided by an NGO, Action Aid international, confirms that there is a steep rise in the consumption of illicit drugs, especially by the youth in these two districts. It is almost endemic at Tulkhun, Sangam, Dupathyar, Sampthan and Nanil - the affected zones in Anantnag.

According to Dr Manzoor Hussein, physician at Anantnag sub-district hospital, "It's possible that around 45 per cent of population in this district consume illicit drugs. Yet official figures are difficult to come by." Those in the 15-30 age group are susceptible to drug abuse and male drug abusers outnumber females, said a source. Normally, women do not have direct access to the more prevalent drugs. Instead, they use substances like white fluid (commonly used in offices for erasing printed errors) and boot polish.

Dr Mohammad Muzaffar Khan, clinical psychologist with the drug de-addiction centre at the J&K police hospital in Batamaloo, has patients from all across Kashmir. Along with his team of psychiatrists, he recently organised drug de-addiction camps in the highly affected districts of Baramulla and Anantnag. "In Anantnag, around 500 drug addicts were registered at the camp. In Baramulla, 200 patients, mainly youth, approached us for medical treatment," said Dr Khan. The problem is grave amongst the youth, he said. But, due to a stigma attached to addiction, only a few people approached them for treatment.

According to doctors in the Baramulla District Hospital, an astounding 40 per cent of the population is involved in drug abuse. Among them are drivers as well as young people from well-off families. They use cough syrup, alcohol, alprax and brown sugar and also take intra-venous injections of psychotropic drugs.
A finding by Action Aid is alarming. It shows that school and college students are involved in this practice. Information obtained from a blood bank in the Baramulla district office shows that 20 per cent of students in higher secondary schools and 30 per cent in colleges are consuming illicit drugs. The study reveals the fact that the main suppliers are military camps and hotels in the district.