India's opioid fix: The growing drug menace, heroin seizures in India

In September this year, the Special Cell of Delhi Police nabbed one of the biggest hauls of heroin from Mumbai. The heroin, which was coated with licorice, and in a massive container, amounted to around 345 kilograms (kg), valued at Rs 1,725 crore.

Between April 2021 and May this year, the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence is reported to have seized 3,800 kg of heroin, worth around Rs 26,000 crore.

The last big haul was in July 2021, from the NhavaSheva port of 239 kg of heroin, worth Rs 1,625 crore. Sanjay Kumar Singh, deputy director-general (operations) at the Narcotics Control Bureau, says drug abuse across the board has increased.

“The consumption of drugs among the youth is increasing. I think roughly around 100 million Indians consume drugs,” said Singh.

Singh’s statements corroborate data from the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, which estimated the number of opioid users in India at 23 million in 2018 - a 600 per cent increase since 2004.

The number of cannabis users stood at 31 million in India. The ministry also found that heroin, pharmaceutical opioids, and opium were the most commonly-abused opioids in India.

 

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Source: NCRB, Narcotics Control Bureau, Delhi Police