AIZAWL:
The National Survey on Extent and Pattern of Substance Use in India (2019), Magnitude of Substance Use in India report, has found that 25.67 per cent of the people who participated in the survey in Mizoram were using opioids.
This was stated during a meeting of the State Working Committee on ‘Ruihhlo Do’ or combat against drugs, on June 20, chaired by state excise and narcotics minister Dr K Beichhua.
The survey, which covered the age group of 10 to 75, said that 7.8 per cent of them were drinking alcohol of which 1.1 per cent were alcoholics while 3.24 per cent smoked cannabis (ganja) and 0.29 per cent were addicted to cannabis.
Beichhua said that the need of the hour was reduction of drug abuse which could be achieved by coordinated efforts of the government, civil societies and the churches.
The meeting decided to constitute district working committees in all the 11 districts to be chaired by the district deputy commissioners and officials of the concerned departments and leaders of the civil societies as members.
It was also decided that a village level task force should be constituted in all the villages in the rural areas and a local level task force in all the localities within the Aizawl Municipal Corporation area.
Rs 7 crore budget for constitution and working of the district working committees and task forces was approved by the meeting which would seek approval of the state government.
At least 1,697 people had died in Mizoram due to drug abuse since 1984 till April 28 this year which included 202 women. Of the drug-related deaths – 1,161 have died due to clinical drugs, especially spasmo proxyvon and parvon spas, 214 due to heroin and 322 people due to abuse of other drugs.