India largest opiate market in South Asia

“India is the largest opiate market in the sub-region with an estimated opiate using population of around 3 million persons,” says the 2008 World Drug Report compiled by United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC).

It states that the average annual prevalence of opiate consumption in South Asia was 0.4 per cent in 2006.

The only reason to cheer for the anti-narcotic agencies in the country is that the report mentions that India seized one of the highest quantity of drugs in the region.

In 2006, Indian agencies seized 157,710 kg of cannabis, 2,826 kg of opium and 1,218 kg of heroin.

But according to UNODC officials, India has emerged as a major transit point for drug traffickers with neighbouring countries like Pakistan, Afghanistan and Myanmar accounting to more than 97 per cent of the Opium production the world.

“India is an important transit point for drug traffickers. It is being used for routing drugs from the neighbouring countries to other Southeast Asian countries and many European countries,” Rajiv Walia of UNODC said.

The report warns that stabilisation in the world drugs market for the last few years is under threat. It said a surge in opium and coca cultivation and the risk of higher drug use in developing countries threaten to undermine recent progress in drug control.

The report claims that less than one in every twenty people (age 15-64) have tried drugs at least once in the past 12 months and added that about 26 million people in the world are people with severe drug dependence.

Officials pointed out that the crackdown by anti-narcotic agencies have resulted in a ‘check’ on the drug market in India.

“Even as developing countries are under threat from drug syndicates, Indian agencies are strict enough to keep a check on them but more can be done,” said Ashita Mittal of UNODC.

She also had a word of appreciation for the government, which has now tied up with UNODC to fund the agency’s programme to strengthen drug enforcement in Southeast Asia.

“India has become a donor country. We have received donations from the government to help strengthen drug enforcement in the region. The other country which has donated to this programme is US,” Mittal said.