DRUGS ADDICTIONS IN KERALA GETTING CRUTIAL AT YOUNG AGE.

 

Kerala has been dealing with an unprecedented rise in the number of cases registered under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act. According to latest statistics, there were 26,629 cases in 2022, which is almost 300 per cent more than the cases reported in 2016. What is more concerning though is that more and more children are falling into the trap of drug addiction, and being used by drug gangs to sell the contraband. According to a survey conducted earlier this month by the Kerala police, among drug users below the age of 21, 40 percent were children below 18 years of age. Also Read - States Campaign For Fair Representation In Lok Sabha Post 2026 Census For instance, in the Samurtha Children's Care Centre , Changanacherry, a de-addiction centre for those under the age of 18, headed by T.M Mathew, there has been a steady rise in the admission of young drug users after the pandemic. The centre was set up in 2021 and is Kerala's only such institution to care for children below 18 years of age. Mathew said that there are currently about 11 children between the ages of 11 to 18 years, who are admitted here. Reverend Shiji, a Christian priest, who runs another de-addiction centre said that the youngest child admitted there was just nine years old

Kerala has been dealing with an unprecedented rise in the number of cases registered under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act. According to latest statistics, there were 26,629 cases in 2022, which is almost 300 per cent more than the cases reported in 2016. What is more concerning though is that more and more children are falling into the trap of drug addiction, and being used by drug gangs to sell the contraband. According to a survey conducted earlier this month by the Kerala police, among drug users below the age of 21, 40 percent were children below 18 years of age. Also Read - States Campaign For Fair Representation In Lok Sabha Post 2026 Census For instance, in the Samurtha Children's Care Centre , Changanacherry, a de-addiction centre for those under the age of 18, headed by T.M Mathew, there has been a steady rise in the admission of young drug users after the pandemic. The centre was set up in 2021 and is Kerala's only such institution to care for children below 18 years of age. Mathew said that there are currently about 11 children between the ages of 11 to 18 years, who are admitted here. Reverend Shiji, a Christian priest, who runs another de-addiction centre said that the youngest child admitted there was just nine years old