Kounsar Bashir
In the serene backdrop of Kashmir, an ominous shadow has crept over the valley in the form of a surging drug crisis.
Arif’s close call with tragedy is but a single chapter in this unsettling narrative.
Arif found himself in a remote room during his cousin’s wedding celebration in the ancestral village of Dehruna. What started as an ordinary midnight party escalated into a nightmarish ordeal. Whiskey flowed freely, followed by cannabis, and ultimately heroin.
But as the night’s excitement peaked, Arif’s joy turned to agony. His muscles cramped, and his skin crawled, drenched in sweat before he collapsed. For the next thirteen hours, he lay unconscious, friends concocting excuses to cover his absence.
Arif was one of the fortunate ones to survive.
Kashmir has witnessed a concerning rise in unexplained sudden deaths due to drug overdoses.
Yet, families are often hesitant to accept this truth. Even hospitals, in an attempt to spare the families from ostracism, certify these deaths as cardiac arrests. In more ways than one, the valley stands troubled today.
The Stark Figures
The figures lay bare the scale of this crisis. On August 4, 2023, the Standing Committee on Social Justice and Empowerment unveiled a startling revelation.
An estimated 13.50 lakh drug users now reside in Jammu Kashmir, with the majority falling within the 18 to 75 age bracket.
Among these, a substantial portion, approximately 1,68,700 individuals, are minors. A disconcerting breakdown reveals that 8,000 are using cannabis, 95,000 opioids, 19,000 sedatives, 100 cocaine, 400 Amphetamine Stimulants, 46,000 inhalants, and 200 Hallucinogens.
In the 18-75 age group, 11,80,000 adults grapple with drug addiction. Of these, 3,54,000 use alcohol, 1,36,000 cannabis, 4,47,000 opioids, 1,51,000 sedatives, 89,000 inhalants, and there are 1,000 users each of Cocaine, stimulants, and Hallucinogens.
The Youth Development and Rehabilitation Centre (YDRC), a stronghold in the battle against addiction, stands as the largest de-addiction center in Kashmir.
Run by the Jammu Kashmir Police in Srinagar, it has been extending its helping hand since 2008. Originally equipped with just five beds, the center now accommodates up to 50 patients at a time.
Stories of Desperation and Hope
Every day, Rehan, a 23-year-old resident of Shopian, grapples with profound remorse for the fateful decision that led him on a perilous journey.
Born into the lap of prosperity as the son of a successful apple trader, Rehan never encountered financial constraints.
After completing his engineering degree at a private college in Punjab, he returned to the serene landscapes of Kashmir in 2021, harboring hopes of a prosperous future. The seed of his addiction, however, had been planted in Punjab, and though he initially managed to keep it at bay in Kashmir, the siren call of drugs grew irresistible.
With the passage of time, his body, now in the relentless grip of addiction, clamored for its familiar fix. Thus began Rehan’s harrowing journey into the world of drug dependence, etching another chapter in the unfolding tale of drug abuse in Kashmir.
He got into his friend’s car for a carefree joyride through the Shopian town in south Kashmir.
During this seemingly uneventful escapade, Rehan’s friend gave him heroin, marking the beginning of a costly and devastating journey into the world of heroin.
“I remember vividly that he stopped the car at a secluded spot and produced a small bag filled with white powder and a shiny foil,” Rehan recollects.
Rehan now wears a weary face, framed by an overgrown beard which clearly appears out of place on his once-healthy frame.
“Back then, I was clueless about the nature of that enigmatic white substance. But when my friend insisted that I give it a try, I couldn’t resist the temptation,” Rehan admits, a sense of apology evident in his voice.
A full year of Rehan’s life was sacrificed on the altar of this relentless craving. His once-healthy body withered, shedding a staggering 17 kilograms of body weight.
His flourishing construction business crumbled, and he parted with over Rs 73 lakhs to feed his insatiable heroin appetite, a toll that included both the cost of the drugs and later, his medical expenses.
“At my peak of addiction, I was spending more than Rs 30,000 each day on heroin,” Rehan discloses, emphasizing the overwhelming extent of his dependency.
“The insidious trap of free heroin doses had me ensnared. It’s a sinister ploy used by drug peddlers to hook unsuspecting young souls,” Rehan recounts, as he details the strategies used to lure individuals into addiction.
“Little did I realize that my youthful curiosity would rapidly transform into a relentless addiction. After just a few inhales, my head began to spin, and I felt a surge of nausea,” Rehan narrates, explaining the moment when he became entrapped by the allure of heroin.
“In the grip of this euphoria, I returned home and locked myself in my room, ignorant of the fact that I was high on heroin. The yearning to relive that moment dominated my every thought,” Rehan confesses, describing the torment of withdrawal.
“As the days passed, my addiction deepened. I was oblivious to the financial abyss I was falling into, spurred by the insatiable craving for heroin,” Rehan reflects on the descent into a cycle of addiction.
“Perhaps that’s why my friend singled me out for the throes of a costly addiction like heroin,” Rehan speculates, pondering the motives behind his friend’s actions.
“The heroin trade unfolds as the most exploitative form of direct selling, wherein the first user unwittingly pays for the entire chain, perpetuating the cycle of addiction,” Rehan outlines the grim mechanics of the drug trade.
Over the years, YDRC has provided treatment for 32,069 patients in the Outpatient Department and rehabilitated 2,964 patients in the Inpatient Department.
In 2022, 2,340 patients were counseled and treated in the OPD, with 270 patients admitted and rehabilitated in the IPD.
Yet, a disconcerting trend is unfolding in the valley – a surge of girls and young women becoming entangled in drug abuse.
Sana, a pseudonym for a 23-year-old girl, bears the physical scars of her battle with addiction. Her addiction to heroin began at the age of 20, lured by the promise of a better life as a paramedic.
What unfolded, however, was a cruel twist of fate. Her college in Punjab was a sham, duping her parents of a substantial sum.
Desperate for income, she found herself drawn into a world of heroin trafficking, oblivious to its true nature.
She began with snorting small amounts of the drug, driven by the illusion that it would make her fearless. Over time, snorting transformed into injecting, plunging her deeper into the abyss.
Sana’s family, who had pinned their hopes on her success, saw their dreams shatter as she spiraled into addiction. She soon found herself pleading for money from her family, further plunging them into debt.
Now, the burden and guilt have weighed her down to a breaking point, leaving her with thoughts of ending her life. Opioid substitution therapy (OST) offers a glimmer of hope as she frequents the hospital with her mother.
Her heart-wrenching story mirrors that of other young victims.
At the Drug De-Addiction and Treatment Centre (DDTC) SMHS hospital, a frail, 14-year-old girl seeks help for her heroin addiction.
Bullying, an older group of friends, easy access to money, and an overbearing family are the contributing factors. The stigma surrounding female drug abusers presents a formidable barrier to seeking help.
A Call to Action
A decade ago, the National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences in Srinagar which was accustomed to seeing one or two patients a week is handling 10 to 15 drug addiction cases daily.
Today, a startling reports reveal a seismic shift in the nature of crimes committed by drug addicts. In the pre-2019 Kashmir, these individuals were primarily linked to theft and burglary, maintaining their cash flow.
Now, a new, more ominous pattern emerges.
Aijaz Asad, the Deputy Commissioner of Srinagar, sheds light on a troubling statistic. The authorities now suspect a connection between the rising cases of thefts and burglaries in Srinagar and drug abuse. Asad, quoting police records, paints a grim picture: “95 percent of the thefts are done by those involved in (illegal consumption or dealing of) drugs.”
Theft was once a rarity in Srinagar, but it has now become a sinister regularity. Asad, during a seminar marking the International Day against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking, expressed his shock at the data, emphasizing that most thefts are inexplicably tied to drugs.
Dr. Yasir Rather, a professor of psychiatry at IMHANS Srinagar, points out a disturbing correlation. “The escalating crime graph in Kashmir may be intrinsically linked to the rising number of heroin abusers,” he opines.
As they grapple with addiction, some turn to burglary and even murder, driven by their desperate pursuit of the next fix. In this struggle, the pattern of addicts becoming peddlers to secure a cash flow is alarmingly rampant, Yasir said.
This harrowing reality finds a haunting parallel in studies conducted beyond Kashmir’s borders. In the United States, research reveals that more than 26% of those who reported using alcohol, cannabis, and cocaine within a 12-month period also admitted to committing violent crimes in the same timeframe.
The connection between drug abuse and criminality extends to various facets of life. Some resort to aggressive techniques to acquire money for their next dose, while others are drawn into drug trafficking, a path fraught with violent crimes.
For many, violence becomes a long-term side effect of substance abuse, as seen in individuals addicted to methamphetamine, suffering from anxiety, confusion, mood disorders, and aggressive or violent behavior.
The impact of substance abuse reverberates through society, contributing to an increase in domestic violence, sexual assault, suicide attempts, and other aggressive behaviors. Research underscores that between 25% and 50% of men who commit acts of domestic violence also suffer from Substance Use Disorders (SUDs), while a staggering 80% of child abuse cases involve the use of drugs and alcohol
Research from the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) found that nearly 80% of individuals involved in the criminal justice system have a history of substance abuse, indicating a strong link between drug addiction and criminal behavior.
Saleema, a pseudonym chosen to shield her from further anguish, found herself trapped in a nightmare one hot June evening.
It was a scorching day, and she was serving dinner to her three innocent children when terror invaded their home.
A man, once the love of her life, abruptly shattered the tranquility of their lives. Without warning, the intruder unleashed a storm of verbal abuse upon Saleema.
“Then, the man’s rage turned on the helpless children, their young bodies bearing the brunt of his brutality. A wooden stick became a merciless instrument, beating them all to the brink of despair. The little ones could do nothing but watch in terror as their world crumbled,” said Saleema.
But the worst was yet to come.
The man, who should have been their protector, violently seized Saleema, casting aside the food that had become a symbol of familial warmth.
For agonizing minutes, he subjected her to unspeakable torment, a nightmarish ordeal etched into her memory.
With cruelty in his eyes, he led her into the bedroom, locking the door behind them. What followed was an excruciating symphony of shouts, and the haunting echoes of her pain, forever etched in her children’s souls.
Saleema resides in Anantnag town, her life entwined with a man enslaved by the clutches of addiction.
“Every evening, he stumbles through the door, consumed by a menacing cocktail of drugs and alcohol. Violence has become the evening ritual in our household, and it often extends to the streets, where he collapses, unconscious,” Saleema told The Kashmiriyat.
“My clothing are often tattered, my face bears the physical scars of relentless assaults, said the 43-year-old,” she said.
It’s a story etched in pain and despair, one that speaks of agony and silent suffering.
Sadly, the story of Saleema is not an isolated one. It’s a stark reminder of the unrelenting agony that many endure in the grip of the growing drug menace in Kashmir.
In 2016, alcohol caused approximately 90,000 domestic violence deaths worldwide. Alcohol or drug use is involved in 40-60% of domestic abuse situations.
Each year, about 300,000 victims of violent assaults report that their attackers were under the influence of alcohol.
Addressing this grave issue necessitates a multifaceted approach it entails creating a conducive political atmosphere, offering better employment opportunities, enhancing recreational facilities, and implementing effective strategies to curb drug trafficking and availability.
As the valley grapples with this escalating menace, it is imperative that the government, local authorities, and healthcare providers unite in a collective effort to mitigate this crisis.
The path to recovery may be fraught with challenges, but it remains the only ray of hope for the youth of Kashmir