11 high-risk villages, but Karnal district short of de-addiction centres

Parveen Arora

Karnal, December 23

The drug addiction menace is increasing in the district. On an average, 70 to 80 patients suffering from addiction such as alcohol, opium, charas, poppy husk, cocaine and tobacco products come to de-addiction centres in the district. The number is significantly high in comparison to last year when 10 to 15 patients came to these centres.

Drugs being smuggled

• Drugs reportedly being smuggled to Karnal from Odisha, MP, Chhattisgarh, Delhi, Jharkhand, Punjab and UP by peddlers
• Ballah, Jaisinghpura, Chandrao, Kheri Jattan, Jalmana, Kherisarafali, Bilona, Bansa, Kaimla, Kalsora and Khizrabad villages identified as high risk

There is no specific data of patients suffering from drug addiction in the district, but the administration has identified 11 high-risk villages — Ballah, Jaisinghpura, Chandrao, Kheri Jattan, Jalmana, Kherisarafali, Bilona, Bansa, Kaimla, Kalsora and Khizrabad. Each de-addiction centre, including private, has adopted one to two villages to spread awareness and provide treatment to patients.

The facilities for the treatment of patients at government hospitals are inadequate. There are seven de-addiction centres — one at the district Civil Hospital and six private. The Kalpana Chawla Government Medical College (KCGMC) does not have a dedicated de-addiction centre for patients, but its Department of Psychiatry provides an OPD facility and admission facility to patients suffering from psychiatric illness and dual diagnosis.

The 10-bed de-addiction centre at the district Civil Hospital, which treats 20 to 25 drug addiction patients daily (four-five times more than last year when the centre received less than five patients a day), is severely understaffed with only one psychiatrist, a counsellor, a community nurse, a pharmacist, three nurses, three general duty assistants, two cleaning workers and three guards, who have to provide round-the-clock care to de-addiction patients as well as general medical patients.

The only physiatrist appointed here works on a contract basis and has to look after the OPD work and jail duty, attend meetings, hold awareness campaigns in rural and urban areas as well as provide consultation for medico-legal cases, disability evaluation for their pension along with taking care of the de-addiction centre. Owing to the shortage of facilities, patients have to go to private centres, which is an extra burden on them. Residents are demanding the opening of a dedicated de-addiction centre at the KCGMC.

Dr Jagdish Dureja, Director, KCGMC, said they had only 3 psychiatrists running the psychiatry ward along with the OPD and Emergency. “We have sent a request for staff. As soon as we get staff, we will start a dedicated de-addiction centre,” he added.