| Heroin out, pills in: J&K's new addiction hiding in medicine cabinets | | | Muskan Thakur
Early Times Report
Jammu, Oct 4: As the police crackdown on drugs in Jammu and Kashmir intensifies, the narcotics trade has simply changed its route. Large consignments of heroin, charas and other contraband are being seized and peddlers are being pursued, yet medicines meant for pain relief and other ailments have quietly become the new instruments of addiction. At the local level, this form of abuse is being referred to by names such as "Tapal."
Police acknowledge the shift. Investigations show that the misuse of drugs such as tramadol and tapentadol is rising steadily. These are prescribed by doctors for severe pain and certain serious conditions, but people with addiction are now consuming them in large quantities. The trend has become a fresh worry for both law enforcement and the medical community.
The numbers show how deep the problem runs. Five Addiction Treatment Facility (ATF) centres in Kashmir alone have recorded 5,282 drug-related cases, a large share of them people who have moved from heroin to pharmaceutical drugs. The ATF centre in Kulgam accounts for 1,951 of these. Doctors say many patients who once used heroin have now shifted to pharma drugs. According to Central government figures, roughly 5.4 lakh people in Jammu and Kashmir are struggling with opioid dependence. Under the Nasha Mukt Jammu and Kashmir Abhiyan, police have so far recovered 2,19,425 intoxicant tablets and capsules, along with 3.830 kg of codeine-based syrup.
The most disturbing part of this shift is that children and teenagers are being drawn in. According to the investigation, more than 1,900 children aged 10 to 18 have approached the de-addiction centre at SMHS Srinagar for what is described as a "second addiction." Doctors report that the drugs involved include tramadol, tapentadol and pregabalin. Experts are particularly concerned that many of these children do not consider the pills to be drugs at all. Believing that a medicine must be less harmful, they slide gradually into dependence.
Dr Arshad Hussain, Head of Department at the Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences (IMHANS), Srinagar, says heroin has become expensive and the police crackdown has disrupted its supply. Pharma drugs, by contrast, are cheap, small and easy to conceal. According to the report, 37 per cent of young users obtain them through friends, while 35 per cent buy directly from chemists.
The government is running 21 ATF centres and 12 NGO-run centres across Jammu and Kashmir for treatment and rehabilitation. According to DGP Anil Prabhat, since the Nasha Mukt Jammu and Kashmir Abhiyan was launched on April 11, 2026, 3,257 NDPS cases have been registered, more than 4,000 arrests made and 288 properties attached. |
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