Devastation of youth

Pain and pleasure theory rests on maximizing pleasure and reducing pain: it is in human nature to do that and not follow the way that ends up in pain or astray or disappointment. It is true that for a student maximizing pleasure will rest in getting good marks, likely so for a business person to increase revenue and so on in different sectors and scenarios. The instinct of human nature drives him towards comfort and convenience: question that pops up is what about pain in reverse scenario? This is where the scene of what I call as "Drug Theory" steps in and changes the whole dynamic.

It’s believed that the use of narcotics, and alike contraband, takes the elements of pain away from human mind which is why we had opium addiction during World War amongst soldiers. Destruction brings pain and pain brings more destruction if not channelled properly; an Athlete turns pain of practice into golden rewards while a weak mind resorts to drug abuse. Sufferings and disappointments are part and parcel of life and have been with humans since very inception of life, but drug abuse is new and so are big hands earning from pain and miseries of common people.

Kashmir is known for its beauty, hospitality and heavenly environment but they say "there is an ill omen about everything" and so we have here in the form of horrible drug addiction taking toll on our youth and cumulatively upon whole communities across two divisions. The statistics as are released by different Medical Institutions like that of IMHANS (Institute of Mental Health and Neuroscience) Srinagar, NCRB (National Crime Records Bureau), Government Medical College Srinagar and different Drug De-addiction centers across JK are very alarming and disturbing. Drug Addiction as read by different criminology experts is one of the root cause for increase in crime activities and may lead to total chaos and disruption in society besides devouring large human resource.

Quoting former former Director General of Jammu and Kashmir Police (DGP) Shri. Dilbagh Singh ,"Drug Addiction is the largest and most dangerous issue and threat in JK currently and a bigger challenge and pain awaits us if we do not go out to fight this menace promptly". Time bears witness to fact that when youth of any particular area/region get engulfed in any menace it clamps down upon every possible development in terms of human resource. Drug addiction poses a potential danger making every aspect of our life vulnerable, taking us back to what some refer to as "Zombie world". While I am writing this piece and you have read few lines there are hundreds of syringes being used by our youth in JK for heroin consumption and survey reveals that 33,000 syringes are used on daily basis by youth of Kashmir alone for heroin consumption.

According to a report by the National Drug Dependence Treatment Centre (NDDTC) of AIIMS (All India Institute of Medical Sciences) in February 2019, there were 600,000 people in J&K who were consuming drugs, close to 5% of the total population. The report signified that 4.91% of the population use opioids, and 0.62% depend on them. The rate at which drug addicts walk into de-addiction centers is very alarming, every 10 minutes we have a consultation in de-addiction centers that too when most of the indulged youth find it difficult to come forward and report the problem due to stigma getting attached.

The gloom lies more in South Kashmir's Kulgam district where intake of heroin is reported to be the highest. Addicts spend more than rupees one lakh per month on purchasing Brown Sugar from drug peddlers in Kulgam district of south Kashmir. More precise as per reports, figures indicate that Kulgam district in south Kashmir registered an average sale of heroin worth Rs 1,01,660 per month. "While we as people of Kulgam acknowledge and laud the hard efforts made by District Police Kulgam for cracking down on drug mafia in Kulgam by registration of FIRs against drug peddlers and consumers it is imperative and we urge administration that there is more than mere tracking down of consumers.

Believed by world scholars that violence and drugs go hand in hand, we have come a long way in preserving rich heritage and culture of Kashmir againt various anti social elements. At this juncture it is paramount that we stand together against this menace and work collectively for its eradication.

 The author is a Doctorate in Rural Development.