KOZHIKODE: Use of alternative drugs acting as psychotropic substances is now a major concern of the Excise police, as more and more youngsters are turning to it for intoxication instead of narcotic products. Since these psychotropic medication known as the mind-altering drugs, often used to treat anxiety, depression and insomnia, are not under the category of narcotic products, officials are not able to stop it.
“The department is now on a mission to trace medical shops that sell such substances or the anti depression tablets to the people without a proper or authorised prescription,” said excise deputy commissioner P.K. Suresh Kumar. “Parents and teachers report recovering such tablets from children. The use of whitener-inhalation for addiction are also on the rise among teens."
The drugs include clonazepam, diazepam and cough syrups like Phensedyl and Corex with the codeine content, which are considered now as an alternative way for intoxication. A pharmacy chief at a private hospital said the demand come mainly from youngsters.
“Since we have a strict direction not to sell such products without a proper prescription of a medical practitioner, we don’t encourage them,” she said. The Union health ministry has banned some 350 fixed-dose combinations (FDC) drugs that were widely available in the market, in which cough syrups with codeine content are used as an intoxicant.
“Over the last few years, there has been a rise in cases of solvent abuse among children in the 10-18 years age group in the city,” the deputy commissioner said.
“The box that has been kept at the schools during the previous academic year to identify the use of narcotic product among youngsters has helped us a lot in tracing nearly four to six wholesale vendors of ganja and similar banned narcotic products in the district. Hence the department has decided to strengthen the activity of the school anti-narcotic clubs."
