Today, a large number of the youth of India are falling prey to drugs. Along with drugs, the increasing drug addiction among the youth remains a matter of great concern. According to recent news, a 23-year-old youth has been arrested in Navi Mumbai with drugs worth more than Rs 5 lakh.
In which the police are trying to find out where such a large quantity of drugs could be available to this young man. Although this is not the first case of drug busting in India, such news has been coming out from time to time. This problem is being faced on a large scale in some states of India. If we talk about the last few years, the drug trade has emerged as a big problem in Punjab.
Although the Government of India and the State Governments make every possible effort to destroy this entire drug trade, every time the cases come to light, these efforts are exposed.
Recently revealed figures
According to Drug War Distortion and Wordometer, the worldwide illicit drug trade is estimated to be more than Rs 30 lakh crore. Along with this, according to the National Drug Dependent Treatment Report, about 1 in 16 people in India consume alcohol, in the number of women is quite high.
According to this report, about 20% of the Indian population between 10 and 75 years of age is under the influence of some kind of drug addiction. Many such cases are seen in which very young children are struggling with drug addiction.
How big is the Indian pharmaceutical market?
According to a report by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Control released in 2016, about 6% of the 300 tonnes of cannabis supplied annually in the world in 2016 was found to be consumed in India alone. Apart from this, in the year 2017, the global supply of hemp increased from 300 tonnes to 353 tonnes. In which about 10% was supplied in India. Many figures show that till the year 2017, India’s illegal drug market was worth about Rs 10 lakh crore.
According to the most recent report, in the year 2020, India ranked fourth in opium seized worldwide according to the World Drug Report. It is also estimated to be the third-largest quantity of morphine in India.
What is the Indian law regarding drugs?
According to the rules of NDPS (Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985), both consumption and sale of drugs are not legal in India. According to this rule, special courts should be constituted to hear such cases and a provision has been made to sentence the culprits to at least 3 years. However, according to this section, the punishment will be decided according to the nature of the crime.
