No 'zombie drug', man seen in viral video overdosed on pain killer: Maharashtra police clarify

A video showing a man in a disoriented state on a road in Thane, Maharashtra went viral on social media with claims that the person was under the influence of a so-called “zombie drug". However, the local police soon mentioned that the claim was fake, clarifying that he had taken an overdose of Pregabalin, a medicine used to treat nerve pain.

"It has been established that the incident occurred due to excessive consumption of Pregabalin, which is a Schedule-H drug used for nerve pain. No substance such as a 'zombie drug' was involved," they said. It was reported that the man informed the cops about purchasing a strip of 10 tablets for Rs 100 and consuming them for intoxication.

During questioning, the man disclosed that he had come from Nepal last month in search of work and had been addicted to consuming Pregabalin tablets for the last two years.

"During the investigation, it was found that the video was recorded at around 10 pm on April 13 and the person seen in the footage was identified as Sameer Rajendra Rawal (22), a labourer hailing from Achham district in Nepal and currently living on a footpath outside Borivali Railway Station in Mumbai," the police said in a release.

The man was traced to a road in Bhayander on April 17, while the clip went viral a few days before that.

He procured the tablets from a medical shop in Navghar without any prescription. On April 13, he consumed five Pregabalin tablets at once. Subsequently, while walking in the Bhayander area, he felt dizzy and was unable to move, which left him standing in one place.

A team, along with officials from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), inspected the medical shop from where the tablets were procured. It was found that the shopkeeper had left the area after the video went viral.

A report has been submitted to the FDA, Thane, for necessary action against the medical shopkeeper for illegally supplying Schedule-H drugs without a valid prescription, the police added.

This incident from Maharashtra comes days after the Karnataka police clarified on a widely-circulated video falsely claiming to show a man under the influence of a 'zombie drug'. It was instead pointed out that the man was struggling to walk after consuming alcohol with medicines.