Daily Times

The rampant usage of drugs in Pakistan’s educational institutions is indeed alarming. It is an issue, which has been ignored and not deemed significant enough to warrant much attention. But drug abuse is emerging as an alarming crisis in educational institutions; this has been confirmed by the survey information obtained from different NGOs under the supervision of the Punjab Higher Education Commission.

The survey found that both men and women are using various psychoactive substances in colleges and universities.  College and university students are known to frequent cafes to buy drugs and smoke-drug infused shishas. In addition, students belonging to the upper or elite class are known to indulge in consumption of drugs as hazardous as cocaine, crystal meth and ecstasy.

Reportedly, more drug abuse takes place at educational institutes in KP than Sindh and Punjab. This is because of KP’s close proximity to Afghanistan, which has very little control on narcotics. It is estimated that11 to 12 percent of KP’s population uses narcotics. Different search operations have revealed large amounts of crystal meth and crack cocaine from university hostels in Peshawar. Meanwhile, authorities in KPK have remained far too silent regarding this grave issue and have failed to adopt concrete strategies to tackle drug abuse.

Meanwhile, provincial authorities at Sindh and Punjab have been proactive at handling the grave issue of drug abuse in educational institutions. Several strategies and measures have been adopted by the government to counter the menace of drugs in educational institutions. One prominent measure has been to conduct blood screening tests of students at both public and private universities. This would also help control diseases like Hepatitis. This decision was executed by Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah who gave the order for this step in a meeting with the Director General of the Anti-Narcotic Force.

Reportedly, more drug abuse takes place at educational institutes in KP than Sindh and Punjab. This is because of KP’s close proximity to Afghanistan, which has very little control on narcotics

As per this decision, the government would incur the expenditure of the students acquiring education in the public sector for blood screening while the private sector educational institutions are required to allocate funds for blood screening of all students once a year.

Proactive and stringent measures are indispensible for reducing drug consumption in colleges and universities. Strict checks and balances should be maintained to monitor and stop the consumption of drugs.

The writer is based in Lahore and can be reached at aiyza.javaid@gmail.com

Published in Daily Times, November 11^th 2017.