Youngsters
in the Valley are
falling prey to drugs
Mudassir Kuloo
Mohammad Amin, a 55-year-old shopkeeper from South Kashmir's Anantnag district, wanted his only son to become a chartered accountant. However, all his dreams were shattered as his 23-year-old son turned into a drug addict for the last five years. He is not only faced with deteriorating health and career, but the addiction is also taking a heavy toll on his family.
Over the years, Amin made every effort to stop him from taking harmful substances, but to no avail. “He first started smoking while studying in class 9. When he reached higher secondary, he started smoking cannabis and then eventually hard drugs,” said Amin.
As a response, Amin and his wife tried to restrict their son's movement with friends and kept him locked inside his room for weeks. But soon after he started going out, the same things followed, said the visibly upset parent while waiting in a queue at the government's Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences Kashmir (IMHANS-K) to show him to a doctor.
Reflecting on how severe his son's addiction had grown towards drugs, Amin said: “My son was introduced to a drug peddler by one of his friends. Initially, he was given drugs for free by a friend, then he had to purchase them on his own. When he was running out of money, he also sold his bike and laptop to buy drugs.”
For over a year, Amin has been taking his son to various doctors. In 2021, his body was detoxified, but within weeks, he got involved in drugs again. Currently, Amin's son is on medication and has also started counselling sessions.
According to the J&K government's recent survey, around 70,000 people are drug addicts in Kashmir, and among them 52,000 are taking intravenous (IV) heroin. The common substances used by drug addicts in Kashmir are cannabis, heroine, and brown sugar. A study by IMHANS-K also states that among the drug addicts in Kashmir, 61.70 per cent are unmarried people while 33.50 per cent are married, indicating that not only young people but also elders are falling prey to drug abuse.
Take the case of Mohammad Lateef (name changed), a 45-year-old resident of Srinagar's Dalgate area. His tryst with drugs began 10 years ago when he went to Goa in pursuit of a job. In 2012, Lateef, father of two children, got involved when some foreign customers provided him drugs free of charge.
“These foreign customers first lured me towards wine and then cannabis, after which I started taking heroin in lieu of some money from customers as I would give them company in this harmful thing,” he narrated.
He lost everything, from his health to his hard-earned money, due to drugs for four-year. However, in 2016, he returned to his senses after it took a mental toll on his family members. “Initially, medicines did not help me much. I had almost lost hope, but luckily, I came across a few people who helped me get rehabilitated,” said Lateef, who now runs a shop in Srinagar and lives a normal life.
A 25-year-old youth from Central Kashmir's Budgam district, on the other hand, got involved in drugs three years ago when he went to a cousin's wedding and took drugs to ease stress and anxiety. However, he stopped and prefers to live a sober life at present.
While men are mostly seen taking drugs due to their availability, women on the other hand in the Kashmir valley are also falling for drug-addiction in their bids to ease trauma faced due to domestic violence.
Saima Bano (name changed), a resident of Srinagar, was married in 2018. But things started getting uneasy for her as she had to face mental and physical torture from her husband for dowry. She landed at her parents' home several times with bruises on her body.
“He would beat me up and easily lose his cool. Then in 2021, things became unbearable for me and I returned to my parents and then got divorced,” she said in a broken voice.
She was mentally disturbed and tried to end her life several times. After which, one of her friends advised her to take some drugs that would ease her stress and anxiety. “I first snorted a small amount of drugs. Then I shifted to injecting heroin. For over a year, I put my parents in deep trouble. They stood by my side and did not lose their hope. Today, due to my parents' efforts, I managed to quit drugs. I am now taking counseling sessions for several months,” she added.
Kashmir's well known women's rights activist and mediator Ezabir Ali said, “In my work with women, there are many cases of domestic violence that have come to light and are being reported due to the aftermath of this addiction. Previously, we used to see painkillers and cannabis users, but now unfortunately, there are reports of thousands of syringes being used to inject heroin by drug abusers in the valley on a daily basis.”
According to her, there are various reasons for increasing drug abuse in the valley. Unemployment, the loss of job opportunities due to Covid's impact, and the abnormal situation in Kashmir, which has led to a life of uncertainty and frustration are some of the triggers that have led to drug addiction in both men and women.
As a recommendation, Ezabir Ali suggested that efforts at drug prevention should be made in schools, workplaces, community centers, and families to communicate a healthy abstinence-based lifestyle. Youth should be an essential part of the prevention efforts.
Medical practitioners in the valley also believe in the urgency of raising voices against the easy availability of drugs. “We need to raise our voices against drug addiction, including its supply, and make people aware of its consequences,” said Dr Yasir Rather of IMHANS-K.
He further highlighted how drug addiction is prevalent among educated as well as uneducated ones. Although youth are more involved with drugs, there are also people in their 50s who consume drugs and devastate themselves and their families.
Similarly, Abid Bhat, a sociologist, suggested that society take a multi-pronged approach to drug eradication and be more supportive rather than stigmatising drug addicts. “Parents must remain alert to any behavioural change among their children. Even if any child has tried drugs, parents should not be harsh on them but instead counsel them. Besides, if there is a drug addict in a family, people don't want to keep any ties with that family,” Abid said.
“Preachers and social leaders must also raise voices for eradication of drugs,” he added.
Jammu and Kashmir Police claim to be taking active measures to stop the drug menace in the Union Territory. Dilbagh Singh, the Director General of Police of J&K, recently said that the police are active in dealing with narcotics. According to police records, 815 FIRs were registered in 2021 in drug related cases in J&K. During 2022, 1021 cases were registered under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, and 1685 drug peddlers were arrested.
Daily Pioneer
(The writer is an independent journalist from Jammu and Kashmir: Charkha Features)
