Despite drive, drug abuse cases show 24% rise this year

KOCHI: Despite various initiatives, including awareness programmes, by various law enforcement agencies, cases of narcotic substance abuse, registered under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, have witnessed a 24% increase in 2013 compared to the previous year.
According to data available with the police, 185 cases were registered in Ernakulam district in 2013 under the act compared with 149 cases the year before.
While the number of reported NDPS cases declined in the city area from 132 in 2012 to 127 in 2013, there was rise in such cases in the rural area to 58 in 2013 from 17 the previous year. The number of cases registered under the act was 131 and 27 respectively in Kochi city and Ernakulam rural 2011.
Police said that drug abuse and activities of rackets were rampant in places such as Palluruthy, Kannamaly and Fort Kochi, and in various professional colleges and higher secondary schools in the city. The main targets of suppliers are foreign tourists and autorickshaw drivers in Fort Kochi, Kannamaly and Palluruthy. According to police, local consumers and suppliers fall mainly in the age group of 1830 years.
"In all recent cases, the quantity of narcotic substances seized was very low. But we have not been able to track the supply chain as consumers decline to divulge the details of suppliers. They are not generally forthcoming as they fear retaliation by the drug mafia," said city narcotic cell assistant commissioner Joseph Saju P M.
The accused can be released on bail if the quantity of narcotic substances seized is less than one kilogram. But they resume business after going out on bail, he said.
Most NDPS cases reported in the city are suo motu cases taken by the police. "In such cases, the accused are rarely convicted. We also lack public support and most people are not interested in giving evidence against suppliers," he added.
Earlier ganja arrived mainly from high ranges to the city. But with the influx of migrant workers, who have become the main suppliers and users of narcotic substances, it has started arriving from northern states. This has made the job of tracing sources of supply more difficult for the police.
Drug ampoules, meanwhile, come mainly from places such as Bangalore and Delhi, and customers are charged Rs1 50-300 per ampoule. "These are freely available in Bangalore and easy to procure and supply here," said Saju.
"With police intensifying surveillance in the city, narcotic substances are being supplied from places such as Aroor in Alappuzha by water," said Kochi special branch assistant commissioner M Ramesh Kumar