Youngsters in the throes of a fast-spreading drug menace

What is alarming is that youngsters are as much victims as they are perpetrators

Balancing between postgraduation and a night job was something a girl in her early 20s in the city found hard to strike.

So, when a drug peddler in the garb of food delivery boy befriended her and convinced her that using MDMA, a recreational drug, would help her, she fell for it. Before long, she got addicted and a concerned friend had to alert the excise.

“She was obstinate and not willing to cooperate. We had her counselled and got her to place an order with the food delivery boy. He turned up unfailingly and was arrested,” says an Excise officer.

Whatever be the reason, there seems to be plenty touted around by crooks from better focus to better sex and youngsters are increasingly being lured into the vortex of drugs as reflected in the almost daily seizures in Kerala’s commercial capital.

One particular figure is equally or more alarming showing how youngsters are as much victims as they are perpetrators. Among the 237 booked in 209 cases under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act between January 2021 and February 2022, as many as 230 are in the 18-22 age group, while seven were minors.

“We have also noticed an increasing presence of women among the accused. That their presence may help evade intense checking could be one reason,” says P.V. Aleyas, Deputy Excise Commissioner, Ernakulam.

While the seizure of cannabis continues unabated, premium synthetic drugs are fast catching up with MDMA, a derivative of amphetamine made up of a cocktail of chemicals, seemingly the most popular. In just over a year, 3.25 kg of MDMA have been seized by the excise alone. LSD stamps are not far behind, with the seizure of 31 LSD stamps hidden in two parcels from abroad on Wednesday being the latest catch.