Shimla, March 27 — Himachal Pradesh stands second only to Punjab in drug addiction, Shimla MP Suresh Kumar Kashyap informed the Lok Sabha during Zero Hour on Thursday. Citing data from school surveys and government employees, he criticized the Congress-led state government for failing to address the growing crisis.
“Himachal, known as Devbhoomi, is increasingly falling into the clutches of addiction. Youth are losing their vitality,” Kashyap said. Referring to a recent survey of 204 schools, he mentioned that 9% of children were found using injections, while 35% of those in drug de-addiction centers were addicted to chitta, a synthetic heroin-based drug.
He revealed that 473 drug cases had been registered in Shimla alone over the past two months, but lamented the state’s poor 27% conviction rate under the NDPS Act.
Kashyap also accused the administration of negligence, claiming that 60 state government employees across the power, education, and police departments were found using drugs. “The chief of the state says action will be taken after six months,” he added, criticizing the delay.
