By Mudassir Kuloo, Agence India Press,
Srinagar: Despite over four thousand women are taking drugs in Kashmir and their number has been increasing alarmingly, the government has failed to set up an exclusive drug de-addiction centre, where they can be admitted for treatment.
The Kashmir Valley continuously face a dearth of drug de-addiction centers and it further aggravates when it comes to treating female drug abusers.
According to a recent survey, there are two lakh drug abusers in Kashmir while over four thousand women are taking drugs in the Valley and their number have been increasing very alarmingly.
Researchers have revealed that women living in the rural areas consume nicotine by puffing hookah and also by having feeds of poppy seeds. While the urban women also addicts in various medicinal drugs.
Talking to Agence India Press, Medical Officer at the Drug De-addiction Centre, Police Control Room (PCR), Srinagar, Dr Sheba, said, “Every week more than five female drug abusers visit us but because of the lack of infrastructure, we fails to cure them properly,” she said, “Incidentally, the drug de-addiction centre can only admit to male patients at a time.”
“The female patients also need to be under the continuous medical supervision but due to the lack of the facilities for the females they remain void of it,” she added.
A parent of female drug abuser, wished not to mention his name said, “My daughter is drug addict from last around a year. However due to lack of female de-addiction centre in the Valley, we failed to cure her.”
H.O.D. of the Drug de-addiction Centre PCR, Dr Muzaffar said, “We have a lack of treatment centres for females here in Kashmir and because of the stigma associated with the addiction, many girls do not come forward.”
He further said, many female drug addicts do not come forward for treatment when they come to know that there are no exclusive de-addiction centre’s for them and that the main centre is located at the PCR.
“Earlier we held a drug de-addiction seminar with the HELP foundation at Pattan and after that we received lots of calls from various girls all over the state consuming codeine phosphate and other forms of drugs. Then the response from female drug abusers seemed positive, but as soon as they came to know about the location of drug de-addiction centre they refused to come here,” he said.
Other doctor but wished not to mention his name said, “There are few rehabilitation centres in Kashmir for drug abusers which sans basic facilities and are not meant for female drug abusers. We raised this issue with the government many a times to set up a de-addiction centre for females in the Valley, but to no avail.”
“We have lots of patients in the waiting list here as the rehabilitation centre comprises only of 10 beds. People come here in large numbers and we can’t admit them here as there is not any provision of extra beds,” said a medical counselor, Dr. Aijaz Ahmad at the PCR. (AIP News)