Drug menace as big a challenge as militancy: J&K police

While rampant drug abuse has become an alarming public health problem worldwide, the situation has worsened in Kashmir in recent years with cases of deadly heroin and brown sugar addiction showing an upward trend.

As the geographical location of Kashmir makes the transit of deadly drugs possible, thousands of young men and women are in the grip of drug addiction due to the easy availability of deadly heroin and brown sugar.

As per the data available with J&K Police, in 2020 alone, 36.08 kilograms of pure heroin and 49.7 kilograms of brown sugar were recovered from different parts of the Valley. In the north Kashmir districts of Kupwara and Baramulla, which share a border with Pakistan, 21.15 kgs and 7.60 kgs of heroin respectively were recovered in 2020.

A senior police officer told DH that the recoveries last year make it amply clear that narco-terrorism is emerging as one of the biggest challenges in Kashmir. “The seizure of a huge quantity of heroin and brown sugar and the related arrests indicate a close link between drugs and terrorism. Narcotics trade in Kashmir is the most recent route to fuel terrorism,” he said.

Since early 2019 when the cross LoC trade was shut down, it has become one of the main routes for Pakistan to finance terrorism and unrest in the Valley, he revealed.

In April last year, the National Investigation Agency arrested a bank manager, Afaq Ahmad Wani, from Handwara in Kupwara in a case related to the seizure of 21 kg of heroin and cash from the members of a drug syndicate operating in J&K.

“The total cache was worth over Rs 200 crore. The malaise is much deeper and the narco-terror is growing to become a big threat from Pakistan not only in terms of sustenance of terrorist activities by outfits but also in terms of its impact on the youth in the valley who are seen increasingly indulging in substance abuse,” the officer added.

From 15% of heroin abuse recorded in 2016, it has now gone up to 90%, said doctors at a government de-addiction centre in Srinagar. While 489 drug addicts had visited the out-patient department in 2016-17, the numbers witnessed a surge in 2018-19 when 5,113 patients sought medical help.

Dr Yasir Rather, a consulting psychiatrist at Government Medical College (GMC), Srinagar says most of the drug abusers reporting at the hospital in the last few years are heroin addicts and their number is increasing constantly.

"Almost 90% of drug abusers coming for treatment are those who consume deadly heroin. Even as young as 14-year-old patients are coming to seek help which is more alarming,” he told DH.

And for the law enforcing agencies in Kashmir, the drug menace is as big a challenge as militancy. “There is a lot of drugs and narcotics being pumped into the Valley from across the border. It is quite clear who is pumping drugs and narcotics here. Our focus is not only on fighting terrorism but on fighting drug trafficking and drug abuse too,” Inspector General of Police, Kashmir, Vijay Kumar, said.