Punjab needs healing: Drug policy struggles in India

The harms of the Indian drug war are particularly harsh in Punjab, the western state bordering Pakistan, as state authorities have struggled for years to deal with uncontrolled drug demand, supply, and inadequate treatment. A Parliamentary Panel Report from 2023 unveiled the reality of the drug market. They estimated there were 6,600,000 people using drugs in Punjab, with 697,000 children aged 10-17 years identified with some form of substance use disorders (SUD). Drug-related deaths in Punjab are also one of the highest in the country, a total of 266 deaths reported from April 1, 2020 to March 31, 2023. As reported by the State Assembly, nearly 6.2 lakh addicts were currently in government-run treatment centres, with around 6.12 lakh in private treatment facilities. Punjab clearly is a state in crisis.

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There is nothing remotely new in calls for a drug-free Punjab, or cracking down on drug use or selling – these are repeated rhetorics across drug policies in the state and nationwide, often failing to achieve its lofty goals. It is high time to engage in a serious re-evaluation of the strategy or can we look for a different approach altogether.

What has dominated Punjab’s efforts at drug control for the past decade has been increasingly a ‘securitised’, enforcement-led approach. Although drug control efforts have included treatment, rehabilitation and preventive education with focus on compassion, care and circumvention, they have not transformed the punitive intent of all the past drug strategies.

However, the dismal outcomes of Punjab’s illicit drug policy are all too evident. A serious evaluation of the systemic failures is needed, as enforcement has been unable to curtail rising use and harms around problematic use and addiction, or the human rights violations at de-addiction treatment centres and jails, and unimpressive demand reduction initiatives which have not prevented soaring rates of addiction and drug-related fatalities.

Drug markets in the post-pandemic period have changed significantly, and a fresh approach to reducing harms is needed. The appearance of synthetic opioids like fentanyl adulterating in the heroin supply led to a spike in overdose deaths; the lack of an early warning drug system prevents any analysis of changing product dynamics. Drones are increasingly used by drugs sellers to send substances from Pakistan to India, with over 200 drones seized in 2024 alone – double the previous year’s results. Participation in the illegal drug economy is also expanding, with a rising number of women involved in it: an Indian Express 2023 investigation highlighted how some of the most deprived areas of Punjab saw spikes in rates of female involvement in the drug trade, particularly in areas with low numbers of legal jobs.