Effects of Drug Abuse In Community

 

Drug abuse is often accompanied by a devastating social impact upon community life. The present BLOG focuses on the adverse effect of drug abuse on the community as well as on its contribution to violence, crime, financial problems, housing problems, homelessness, and vagrancy.

Reasons for Drug Abuse

1.  To be accepted by the peers

2.  Increasing economic stress

3.  Changing cultural values

4.  Experimentation

5.  Neurotic pleasure

6.  Ineffective Policing

The 8 different types of substance abuse in INDIA are listed below.

1.  Alcohol

2.  Cannabis

3.  Opioids

4.  Sedatives

5.  Inhalants

6.  Cocaine

7.  Amphetamine Stimulants

8.  Hallucinogens 

As per the Magnitude of Substance Abuse in India 2019 report

1.  72 lakhs people need treatment for using Cannabis

2.  11 lakhs people need treatment for using sedatives

3.  60 lakhs people need treatment for using Opioids.

4.  It was estimated there are around 16 crore alcohol consumers in the 10-75 years age group in India.

5.  5.7 crore people needed treatment for using alcohol.

Drug Abuse – Negative Impacts

BREAKDOWN OF FAMILY

Families construct huge parts of our society and when looking at individual cases in-depth, the effects of drug abuse in the household environment can lead to devastating consequences. Drug and substance abuse has been shown to contribute towards various breakdowns of relationships and situations throughout the family including:

·  Divorce

·  Mental illness among children and adolescences

·  Evictions

·  Domestic abuse

·  Emotional abuse

·  Theft

·  Trust

Continuous use of drugs or substances can have varied effects on the user; leading to different behavioral patterns emerging. It is not uncommon to see those suffering from drug or alcohol addiction isolating themselves from loves ones, friends, or family.

OCCUPATION

The workplace should always be a safe environment for you and your colleagues to work in. An overall increase in substance abusers is likely to cause higher chances of encountering those suffering from substance abuse; both in or around the vicinity of the workplace. These types of interactions can potentially cause disparity among employees and even lead to the possibility of job losses.

VAGRANCY

Vagrancy, also known as homelessness, is another prime example of how drug abuse can have devastating effects on the community as a whole. There has been a direct correlation between illegal drug overdoses (indicating a higher volume of drug offenders) and the number of vagrant people in India, An increase in homelessness among the community leads to breakdowns in both social and economical pillars of society.

CRIME RATES

A safe neighborhood is one of the most important factors when looking at somewhere to live. A true reflection of how safe a neighborhood is, crime rates are often monitored. The effects that drug and substance abuse has among communities have undoubtedly led to increases in overall crime rates, specifically petty theft. Of those suffering from addiction, it is known those who take harder substances i.e. heroin and opioids are disproportionately more likely to be involved in criminal activity.

Battle Against Drug Abuse in India – Recent Developments

1.  Government will roll out its Action Plan for 2020-21 known as Nasha Mukt Bharat.

2.  The Focus of the plan will be to build treatment and drug de-addiction facilities in 272 districts identified as vulnerable based on access to drugs and prevalence of substance abuse.

3.  The Action plan will be steered by the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment. (MSJE).

4.  Among the 272 Vulnerable districts identified Uttar Pradesh has 33 vulnerable districts, Punjab (18 districts), Delhi (11 districts), Gujarat (8 districts), and Maharashtra (Pune, Mumbai, Nashik, Nagpur).

Nasha Mukt Bharat will focus on 3 pronged strategies, which are listed below.

1.  Treatment through the Health Departments.

2.  Outreach/Awareness by Social Justice 

3.  Narcotics Bureau

Nasha Mukt Bharat – Main Components of the Action Plan 2020-21

• Reach out to Children and Youth for awareness about the ill effects of drug use;
• Increase community participation and public cooperation;
• Supporting Government Hospitals for opening up De-addiction Centers in addition to existing Ministry Supported De-addiction Centers (IRCAs); and
• Conducting Training program for participants.

The Ministry has also set up a 24x7 National Toll-Free drug de-addiction helpline number 1800110031 to help the victims of drug abuse, their family and society at large.

                                                                     Be Safe, Be Well