Every single day there are reports of break-ins across Shillong; chain snatching in the Fourth Furlong and Polo areas and other forms of theft especially of four wheelers in different parts of the city that are being attributed to substance abusers. With about three lakh drug dependent youth, things are looking pretty grim for Meghalaya. It is possible that the sample survey has not captured the complete picture and the number of addicts is well beyond the Government figures. Roughly substance abusers make up about one-tenth of the population which is a crisis that the State should be looking at more intently and also allocate resources for rehabilitation of addicts. However, before diving deeper into this issue of drug addiction in Meghalaya we need to clearly understand the difference between the terms drug abuse and drug addiction. Someone who consumes illegal drugs is a drug abuser but not necessarily an addict. A drug addict is someone who is dependent on drugs and will try every possible resource to abuse drugs. A drug addict is also someone whose quality of life is now severely hindered and may need immediate medical assistance and psycho-social rehabilitation to recover and lead a normal healthy life.
With the rising number of addicts in the State, Meghalaya needs a robust plan on how to contain this problem. This could only be done with the help of a detailed study on the kinds of drugs being abused, the age-group of addicts, the district/s with the highest consumptions and the availability of de-addiction centres.The State level survey for Substance Use in Meghalaya makes it clear that a sizable population is addicted to drugs. However, there is a large gap between the demand for treatment and treatment services available. A state-level treatment programme is the need of the hour. But a more critical need at this juncture is to have more government-aided de-addiction and detoxification centres for inpatient treatment as well as outpatient clinics with proper access to medicines, doctors and psychiatrists. Detoxification programs are crucial as they prepare a person for treatment in a safe, controlled environment where withdrawal symptoms and any physical or mental health complications) can be managed. Detox can happen in a hospital setting or as a first step to the inpatient or outpatient rehabilitation process. Going through detox is a crucial step in recovery, and it’s these first few weeks that are most critical because they are when the risk of relapse is highest. However, detoxification is not equivalent to treatment and should not be solely relied upon for recovery.
Time and again, it is proven that prevention is better than cure. Prevention programmes about drug abuse need to be carried out in schools, colleges, churches and localities within the Dorbar Shnong. In a State where a sizable population are Christians, the churches have a major role to play in setting up family clinics and counselling centres. Actually families and schools/colleges need to also counsel young adolescents on how to deal with stress and disappointments because that’s one reason for drug use.
