Rising drug abuse is turning Guwahati into a city where public safety and rehabilitation remain under strain
Day by day, Guwahati has increasingly become a hub of drug abuse, and in turn, the growing number of addicts on the streets has become a threat to public safety.
From foot-over-bridges to footpaths, from alleys to beneath flyovers, from busy streets to secluded lanes, it has become increasingly common to encounter individuals struggling with drug addiction. Foot-over-bridges across Guwahati have become a permanent shelter for many drug addicts, creating a hazard to commuters, especially women and children, who use these bridges to cross busy roads.
Guwahati, which has long served as a transit point for drug traffickers, has in recent years also emerged as a centre of drug consumption. This shift is evident from the growing number of addicts visible on the city's streets, the increasing frequency of arrests of drug peddlers, and repeated seizures of narcotic substances by law enforcement agencies.
Khanapara, Garchuk, Jalukbari, Paltan Bazar, Chandmari, Noonmati, Six Mile, Bhangagarh and Ulubari, almost every part of Guwahati appears to be grappling with the common problem of drug abuse. The issue is no longer confined to a handful of localities, with residents across the city increasingly reporting the presence of addicts in public spaces and raising concerns over its impact on safety and law and order.
In a recent incident, Assamese actor Irish Chetri alleged that she narrowly escaped a knife attack by a drug addict in broad daylight in the Sundarpur area while she was waiting to board a cab back to her residence.
Taking to social media, she raised a larger question: "Are Guwahati streets safe with so many drug addicts roaming freely and openly?" Soon after, many others echoed her concern, sharing similar experiences on social media.
Such allegations have once again drawn attention to the alarming issue of substance abuse among youth, and in many cases, children, in Guwahati's crowded and commercially active areas.
Many police officials whom GPlus spoke to admitted that drug abuse has become a serious menace in Guwahati. However, they said taking immediate or sustained action is often difficult for various reasons, including concerns over any untoward incident occurring while addicts are in police custody.
Some police officials also said that identifying drug addicts on the streets, or taking them to de-addiction centres, is beyond the regular responsibilities of the police.
"We often pick up drug addicts and take them to de-addiction centres, or hand them over to personnel from rehabilitation centres. But generally speaking, it does not fall within our domain. It is beyond the normal policing duty," an Officer-in-Charge (OC) of a Guwahati-based police station said. He added that dealing with drug addicts essentially falls under the domain of the Department of Social Justice and Empowerment.
Another Officer-in-Charge of a Guwahati-based police station said that dealing with drug addicts has its own challenges, but the police always try to counsel them and admit them to de-addiction centres whenever possible.
"Frankly speaking, we also fear if anything untoward happens to a drug addict while he or she is in our custody, or if they cause a threat to the public in front of us," the officer said. Though not in as many words, he indicated that the possibility of custodial death remains a major concern.
"Yes, custodial death is one of our key concerns while dealing with drug addicts," another police personnel at a Guwahati-based police station stated.
GPlus also reached out to the Special Task Force (STF) of the Assam Police, whose responsibilities include tackling narcotics smuggling. A senior STF official said their primary job is to bust drug trafficking networks and seize contraband, while rehabilitating addicts, if at all, falls under the responsibility of the district police units.
On its part, the Government of India, through the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, has been implementing the National Action Plan for Drug Demand Reduction (NAPDDR), under which financial assistance is provided to States and Union Territories (UTs) for preventive education, awareness and rehabilitation initiatives.
During the five financial years between 2017–18 and 2021–22, the number of beneficiaries under the NAPDDR in Assam witnessed a sharp year-on-year increase. In 2017–18, according to government data, 2,952 beneficiaries from Assam received assistance under the scheme. The number rose to 9,807 in 2018–19 and further increased to 13,328 in 2019–20. The upward trend continued, reaching 15,995 in 2020–21 and 25,986 in 2021-22.
These government figures indicate that Assam has witnessed a significant rise in the number of people requiring assistance under the NAPDDR. Going by current trends, the figures for the years after 2021–22, which are yet to be made public by the Central Government, may present a similarly concerning picture. Although the number of beneficiaries has also increased in other States and Union Territories, the rise has not been as steep as that witnessed in Assam.
GPlus also spoke to a few private de-addiction centres in Guwahati to understand the overall situation. They highlighted about the risks involved and the financial burden associated with rehabilitation.
“Treating drug addicts have a risk factor attached to it. It also involves huge financial spending given de-addiction treatments tend to be costly,” the owner of a rehabilitation centre in Geetanagar said.
"Drug addicts need constant monitoring and it gets difficult for us to be available all the time. Leaving them unattended can be a threat to public safety. Also, there can be occasions when they would try to self-harm," he said.
He further asserted that Assam lacks an adequate number of government-funded de-addiction centres to effectively tackle the growing menace.
Even as the Assam Police and other central agencies continue to bust drug trafficking rackets and seize large quantities of narcotics from different parts of the state almost every day, one fundamental question remains unanswered: How are these drugs continuing to reach the hands of Assam's youth? Despite frequent crackdowns, arrests, and major drug seizures, the steady flow of narcotics into local communities suggests that the supply chain remains far from broken, raising serious concerns about the effectiveness of existing enforcement measures.