Drugs among Youths

Drug Addiction among the youth generation of Manipur

Manipur is particularly vulnerable to drug abue to its easy availability that comes with its proximity to countries like Myanmar, Thailand and Laos who are producer of drugs. The use of drug amongst the youths of Manipur started from the early part of 1970s and the Heroin from Myanmar began to appear in Manipur in 1979-80.
The people and the Government noticed the seriousness of the problem from the mid 1980s. In 1987, the anti-drug lobby was very active in the form of stringent law enforcing activity. Though in the early 1990s some NGOs came up working in the filed of drug abuse, however it failed to control the increasing number of drug users as they have mainly focussed on treatment and conducting few general awareness programmes.
The majority of the drug users fall in the age group of 23-22 where this group comprises of 68% of the population of addicts. Drug addiction is a phenomenon prevalent among youths and is confined generally to the vicious circle of people in their most productive years. Matriculates to graduates accounts for 85% of the total respondent addicts. Among them, the secondary stage of education ranks the highest addiction rate.

Many of the youths were often initiated to drugs due to pressure from peers. Curiosity about knowing the nature of the drug, enjoyment that they would be receiving from using drug, excess pocket money, sufficient leisure are some important reasons that lead the young to drug abuse and their subsequent addiction. Many of the respondents said that they began to use drug for enjoyment as a sort of frustration/tension remover. Failure in love affairs among the abusers is something which influences the teenagers in using drugs. There are a number of ups and downs in love affairs of these youths. For every conflict with their love ones, they have a strong tendency of resorting to drugs. Another main reason of addiction is the regular abuse of drugs to get themselves relieved of mental setback, physical pain or any other reason which emanates out of various psychological/socio-economic factors.

Sufficient leisure accounts for83% of the drug use: using them during their institutional vacations, holidays, gap between the completion of school final examination and starting of new academic session, etc. These are the periods during which they bein to use drugs. 72% of the abusers began to use drug through limitation of their family elders and friends and they subsequently became drug addict.
87% of the drug users started with drug use out of curiosity to know about the nature of the drugs. Most of them had been introduced to drugs by their peer groups during festivals/concerts/musical nites or any other entertainment programme.

Motivation

99% of the respondents did agree that motivation/counseling plays a vital role in the de-addiction process. Motivational technique/counseling adopted by professional clinical psychologists in drug rehabilitation centers and otehr traetment programs were quite effective in giving a healing touch to the current drug users thereby enabling them to abstain from further abuse.
80% of the drug users stated that most of the time they longed to control their drug habit and tried many a times to shun this habit. 65% said that rehabilitation is the ultimate solution for drug users to be brought back to a recovered mainstream life. Long sufferers due to addiction always hoped for complete abstinence from the drugs.
55% felt that the drug substitution therapy is the best method to keep drug users under control thereby paving a way to bring them back to normalcy. And an overwhelming 98% respondents claim that there is no alternative method which can substitute the important role of family members’ support for the complete abstinence of the drug users. Family support, they said create a conducive atmosphere in the home where the individual drug user feels everyone understands him and problems and that all are ready to help and support him in relation to his recovery and future prospect.
It is strongly felt by 99% of the drug users that inclusion of ill effects of drug menace in school curriculum will be one of the effective measures.