Four youth die of suspected drug overdose in Punjab village within 48 hours

Four young men in their mid-twenties reportedly died due to drug abuse within a span of 48 hours in Lakho Ke Behram village, located along the Ferozepur-Fazilka road. One youth died on Tuesday, while the other three passed away within hours on Wednesday, leaving their families devastated. Sources revealed that all four had a history of drug consumption and had been admitted to de-addiction centres multiple times, but to no avail. The deceased have been identified as Sandeep Singh, Ramandeep Singh alias Rajan, Randeep Singh, and Umed Singh. Ramandeep reportedly died on Wednesday morning after injecting himself with tablets meant for oral consumption. Meanwhile, both Umed and Randeep had quit drugs some time ago, but their health had deteriorated significantly. One suffered from bedsores while the other had developed serious leg complications. Following the tragic incidents, the families of the deceased, along with other villagers, blocked the highway for three hours by placing the bodies on the road. They alleged that seven medical shops in the village were selling psychotropic drugs, which contributed to the deaths. While villagers attributed the deaths to prolonged drug addiction, police officials stated that two of the deceased had been bedridden for several months and had died due to worsening health conditions. A family member of Ramandeep said that he had struggled with drug addiction for several years despite undergoing repeated treatments at various de-addiction centres. He had been consuming drugs for the last nine years and had been in and out of de-addiction centres. Recently, he returned from a private de-addiction centre, but he again injected himself and died on Wednesday morning, the family member added. A police officer mentioned that some long-time drug addicts were attempting to quit, but were struggling. The police were making efforts to counsel such youths and have them admitted to de-addiction centres. Meanwhile, Punjab has recorded the highest number of cases against drug traffickers in the country in 2023, according to data released recently by the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB). Of the 11,589 FIRs registered under various sections of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act in 2023, 7,785 were for drug trafficking accounting for 67% of the total cases. Nationally, 39,112 cases of drug trafficking were recorded, with Punjab alone accounting for nearly 19% of them. Additionally, Punjab reported 89 drug-related deaths in 2023 the highest in the country though lower than the 144 recorded in 2022. The state remained ahead of Madhya Pradesh (85 deaths) and Rajasthan (84 deaths). In total, 654 drug overdose deaths were recorded across India in 2023. Neighboring Himachal Pradesh emerged as the second-highest state in terms of drug-smuggling ratio. While it registered 2,146 cases under the NDPS Act in 2023 not among the top 10 in absolute numbers the state reported 547 cases for consumption and 1,599 for trafficking. This results in a ratio of 7.3 cases per lakh population for consumption and 21.3 per lakh for trafficking.