Beigh arif cni
Srinagar, CNI : Jammu and Kashmir continues to reel under a deepening substance abuse crisis, with official government figures revealing an alarming rise in drug addiction cases across both regions of the Union Territory. In a written reply submitted in Parliament on Tuesday, the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment disclosed that in 2023, the premier de-addiction facility in Srinagar witnessed more than one drug patient walk in every minute, while Jammu’s main treatment centre saw one every two minutes on average.
The disturbing trend shows no sign of abating in 2024 either. Data compiled till June 30 indicates that the Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences (IMHANS) Kashmir, affiliated with Government Medical College Srinagar, registered a staggering 2,23,749 patient visits in just the first six months of this year, maintaining a pace of roughly one patient per minute. The year 2023 saw 5,79,595 patient visits at the same centre, reflecting a worsening drug epidemic in the Valley.
In Jammu, the Addiction Treatment Facility (ATF) under GMC Jammu treated 2,34,107 patients in 2023, which translates to one addict every 2.2 minutes. From January to June 2024, the number of patients stood at 1,04,002, equating to one patient every three minutes.
These figures pertain to only two of the 15 sanctioned ATFs across Jammu and Kashmir. According to the official response in Parliament, J&K presently has 15 sanctioned ATFs, ten located in Kashmir and five in Jammu. In addition, the region is served by nine NGO-run de-addiction centres and a single Integrated Rehabilitation Centre for Addicts (IRCA) situated in Pulwama.
Every district in the Union Territory also has a dedicated cell under the Nasha Mukt Bharat Abhiyaan (NMBA), aimed at promoting awareness, facilitating inter-agency coordination, and delivering community-level interventions.
Despite these institutional mechanisms, the crisis appears to be escalating, with many experts and civil society members warning that the region is staring at a full-blown public health emergency. Health professionals note that the figures represent only those individuals who sought treatment, suggesting that the actual number of drug users could be significantly higher.
A senior official at IMHANS Kashmir, while speaking on condition of anonymity, acknowledged the burden on the system: “The numbers are overwhelming. We are not just dealing with heroin and cannabis but also a dangerous increase in synthetic opioids and pharmaceutical abuse.”
The latest figures have triggered fresh concerns about the availability of drugs, the socio-economic impact on families, and the strain on mental health infrastructure. Various quarters have renewed calls for a comprehensive response involving enforcement, rehabilitation, prevention, and awareness to combat the growing menace. (CNI)