The recent death of a 17-year-old student under the influence of drugs in rural Assam is another reminder of how promising youth have succumbed to the growing menace of drug abuse—a tragedy that should have ignited swift and resolute action from law enforcement. The community mourned, shedding tears for the lost potential, but beyond the sorrow, little was done.
The expectation that authorities would root out the nexus of drug suppliers and users proved to be an illusion. No significant action followed the initial outcry, and the cycle of abuse continued, unchecked and largely ignored.
In Barpeta’s Kandapara market area, the sight of adolescents roaming in the evenings, visibly under the influence of drugs, has become a common and alarming occurrence. Concerned citizens in the region have begun to raise their voices, fearful of the decay creeping into their society.
In response, multiple villages have banded together, organizing awareness campaigns to combat the growing drug problem. These initiatives include efforts by senior citizens, youth groups, Village Defence Parties, and faith leaders, all united in their goal to create a drug-free society.
“We can’t wait anymore for someone to take action,” says the Imam (parson) of the local Mosque, realizing the severity of moral degradation. “Usually we discuss religious matters in the mosque; but it’s time we discuss and plan against drug abuse also,” he added with a note of breaking away from tradition.
Their grassroots efforts involve night patrols, social boycotts, and placing signs that declare certain areas as drug-free zones. But despite their best efforts, these community-led interventions can only go so far. Without systemic support from the state, they face an uphill battle.
Illegal trade has mushroomed in the rural areas due mainly to a few reasons. It’s easy to entice the rural adolescents who have little or no information about the devastation. The rural areas provide traders enough space for hideouts. And, above all, operation is easy in areas away from the close circuit vigilance of the administration.
Some villages like Jania, Bheraldi, Puthimari, Rupakuchi, etc., have taken bold steps to stem the tide of drug abuse. They’ve employed indigenous methods to discourage abuse, and social pressure has had some effect.
For example, Manna, a notorious local drug peddler, was arrested multiple times, each time caught with drugs and even with a pistol in one instance. Yet, after every arrest, he managed to return to his illegal trade, seemingly untouched by the consequences of his actions. Finally, it was not the law, but the collective pressure of the community that forced him to give up his dealings—at least for now.
A few of these community initiatives have been supported by local and national NGOs. Humanitarian Aid International (HAI), a Delhi-based NNGO, and its local partner Anchalik Gram Unnayan Parishad (AGUP) are active in the scene.
Hamidul Islam and his associates of Jania Anchalik Krira Santha organized ‘Krira Jagaran,’ sports events with the slogan “Play and Grow, Ward off Addiction” in order to raise awareness among adolescents and attract them to sports.
They build a community network to affect vigilance besides erecting boards as drug-free zones. They also exploit community norms to stand against the abuse and peddling of substances. “Support of HAI accelerated our venture to the campaign against drug abuse,” said Hamidul. He is optimistic about bringing back to the playground a section of adolescents who are distracted by the internet and the abuse of drugs.
The inadequacy of the current legal framework becomes glaring in these instances. Drug traders are often arrested, but they quickly return to their criminal activities due to slow court proceedings, weak legal provisions, and the failure of authorities to dismantle the networks that enable the trade.
In many cases, traders skip judicial custody entirely, or, if incarcerated, they manage to find ways to expand their operations while awaiting trial.
The lack of strong deterrents emboldens them, knowing that with enough money and influence, they can evade the law and continue their highly lucrative trade. Lalchand, another drug trader in Kanadapara, continues to evade law enforcement despite being caught on multiple occasions. He carries on his illicit trade, undeterred by the sporadic attempts of the police to bring him to justice.
The consequences of this unchecked drug trade are far-reaching, particularly for the youth. In rural Assam, young people, once filled with potential, are now turning into addicts, walking around like zombies, oblivious to their surroundings. Some 25 adolescents regularly roam the streets of Kanadapara, detached from society and addicted to various substances.
Many come from poor backgrounds, unable to afford their addiction but driven by it nonetheless, resorting to theft and petty crime to support their habit.
Mahidul Islam, the founder of the Bheraldi Rural Development Association and Project Director of the NACO-sponsored Goalpara TI Project on HIV/AIDS, reveals the appalling report of having identified more than 50 HIV-positive IDUs (Injecting Drug Users) during the last 5 months.
“We did the HIV screening test in a few locations of Goalpara and found that IDUs are highly vulnerable to HIV infection,” Islam said. HIV screening is not being done everywhere. “It may reveal a deadly picture if screening is done among all drug users,” observed Islam.
The community has tried to address the issue by organizing interventions, but without the full support of law enforcement, these efforts are limited in their effectiveness. Traders often carry arms, making it dangerous for locals to confront them directly.
The arrest of Manna with a pistol underscores the violent and dangerous nature of the drug trade in the region. The community can only do so much when faced with armed criminals who easily defy weak legal systems.
The story of Rajibul, a young man who fell into the grip of addiction, illustrates the depths of the problem. Caught selling drugs among his college peers, he was arrested, but his addiction remained untreated.
The peddlers, knowing that Rajibul couldn’t afford his own drugs, had lured him into becoming a dealer. The cycle of addiction, desperation, and crime is self-perpetuating, trapping young people like Rajibul in a downward spiral from which there is little chance of escape without systemic intervention.
The failure of the state to act decisively is evident in the stories of drug peddlers like Mafi and Ohab, who continue to operate the trade from home for customers from far-off villages like Rupakuchi, Gajia, and Mandia, etc.
Mahiuddin Siddiquei, an educationist and a socially concerned person, says, “Despite the obvious signs of illegal activity, law enforcement has done little to shut down these operations.” The trade continues to grow, feeding off the vulnerability of the region’s youth, Siddiquei added.
Community members say that all categories of drugs, from injecting to sniffing and smoking, are available around, and the substances themselves are costly, far beyond the means of most rural youth.
Yet, addiction drives them to find ways to pay for their next dose, often through theft or by bringing in new customers. This chain system of drug distribution is self-sustaining, as old users are offered free doses for every new user they introduce to the trade.
You may not know that the driver of the cab you just hired is, in fact, a drug addict who requires doses amounting to around Rs 5000 a day to sustain his habit. It might seem like an ordinary ride, but as you step out, you could find yourself suddenly stripped of a valuable possession—perhaps your gold necklace—snatched by the very person you trusted to get you from point A to B.
Besides driving, this individual regularly engages in theft, targeting unsuspecting passersby or even his own passengers. What may shock you further is that this isn’t his first brush with the law. He has been sent to judicial custody a staggering 16 times before, all for similar offenses. But here’s the catch—he never admits to the crime. Because he knows he’ll be out of custody soon, just as he has always managed in the past. Once out, he’ll sell your gold necklace, using the money to fund about 15 days’ worth of drug doses. And the cycle will continue—he’ll be back on the streets, driving a cab, lurking for his next opportunity.
The law, as it currently stands, offers little hope. The legal proceedings are slow, and the punishment for drug-related crimes is not prompt enough to deter the traders. Evidence becomes irrelevant and obscure with the passing of time. Many are able to use their financial resources to engage stronger lawyers for litigation. The state’s failure to act decisively to cut the supply chain of drugs is a glaring shortfall. It is far more difficult to control millions of end-users than it is to sever the supply lines that feed the addiction.
“We have to see it from supply-demand perspectives,” says Abdul Malik, founder of AGUP and a sexagenarian social entrepreneur with a deep knowledge of the social fabric. While welcoming the community initiative, Malik remarks, “We will succeed only if the supply chain is broken by state initiative, or we will be just fighting without knowing the actual enemy.”
Until the government steps in with more stringent policies targeting the suppliers and the trafficking rather than the users, the drug problem in rural Assam will continue to fester, eroding the social fabric of the region. The community’s efforts, while commendable, are not enough to combat a problem of this magnitude. It is time for the state to step up and take decisive action before an entire generation is lost to drugs.
Also Read: Against the current: How climate change wreaks havoc in Assam’s Barpeta
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