By Elton Gomes
On Tuesday, Punjab chief minister Captain Amarinder Singh announced free treatment for drug addicts belonging to the lower economic strata at all state-run de-addiction centres. Singh added that free travel with one attendant in government buses to such de-addiction centres will also be provided.
The chief minister was chairing a high-level meet of civil surgeons, medical superintendents and principals of government medical colleges at Punjab Bhawan in Chandigarh. Singh also directed his chief principal secretary, Suresh Kumar, to make sure that sufficient funds for the treatment are immediately placed with the concerned deputy commissioners.
What does the Punjab government intend to do?
The chief minister has asked Punjab’s health department to have a mechanism in place for using services of private hospitals, medical, and educational institutions to assist the treatment of addicts. Punjab’s heath minister Brahm Mohindra stated that the government plans to recruit more psychiatrists to manage the increasing number of cases. Mohindra further suggested using services of private healthcare players for opening Outpatient Opioid-Assisted Treatment (OOAT)-based clinics.
Punjab’s finance minister Manpreet Singh Badal has extended full support to the health department in meeting the shortage of psychiatrists. Badal encouraged doctors to motivate parents to get their affected children treated, without any fear of social stigma.
Chief minister Singh claimed that he would personally take up the issue with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, urging him to intensify the Centre’s efforts on the crackdown on drugs and narcotics into Punjab from bordering states of Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, and Jammu & Kashmir.
Furthermore, Singh emphasised the need to contain unscrupulous chemists who allegedly supply countermand drugs and medicines by not adhering to prescribed norms. He urged Mohindra to convene a meeting of chemist associations to deliberate ways to end such unlawful practices, further clarifying that genuine customers should not be harassed under enforcement rules. In addition, he asked the health department to establish a protocol for medical, health and diagnostic services for patients.
Singh also urged private institutions that host foreign students to keep a strict check on them, as some foreign students have been allegedly involved in smuggling and peddling of drugs.
What is the problem?
For a long time, the Punjab government has pointed fingers at Pakistan for the increase in drugs. Since the last ten years or so, the drug menace in Punjab has reached unimaginable levels – one reason for this is the ready availability of cheap opium. At least one-third of Punjab’s rural population consumes opium, with daily doses coming up to Rs 30 to 40. Secondly, the proliferation of drugs is due to drug addicts as they require an average of Rs 1,400 per day to supplement their addiction. As a result of this, to gain extra money, some addicts turn peddlers, thereby feeding into the drug economy.
The current state of government-run de-addiction centres is pitiable. Absence of a psychiatrist in such centres has added to problems. The addicts visit the centres at night seeking ‘immediate relief’ when they do not have access to drugs, but as medical officers are not permitted to prescribe medicines the addicts often go unattended.
What has the Punjab government done in the past?
In October 2017, the Punjab government introduced the Outpatient Opioid Assisted Treatment (OOAT) project as a pilot in Amritsar, Tarn Taran, and Moga districts, for the treatment of drug addicts. Under the initiative, buprenorphine, an opioid used to treat the addiction, was provided to addicts in Out Patient Departments (OPDs). A total of 26 centres were launched across the three districts. Health minister Mohindra said that the system has been created so that those entering the centre won’t have to face any kind of harassment.
The project was launched in April 2018, in eight Central jails and 19 rehabilitation centres across Punjab. The three centres at Amritsar, Tarn Taran, and Moga collectively saw more than 4,000 patients, out of which 3,940 were under regular treatment.
Recent media reports have indicated that civil surgeons have been instructed to prioritise drug addicts by starting their treatment as early as possible.
Potential solutions to the drug menace in Punjab
Experts opine that the Punjab government has been under immense pressure to stop the flow of drugs in the state. Recently, the Punjab cabinet decided to recommend the death penalty for drug peddlers in the state. The Congress government urged the Centre to amend the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act (NDPS) in such a way that drug peddlers are given the death sentence in the first conviction and not the second, as is the current law. However, the death sentence might not be a solution. The government should instead focus on strengthening the network of de-addiction centres in Punjab.
Elton Gomes is a staff writer at Qrius
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