Is ice meth consumption really as high as Shahryar Afridi claims?

 

ISLAMABAD: Former Islamabad Inspector General Tahir Alam Khan expressed his reservations over the validity of the State Minister of Interior Shahryar Afridi’s claim that 75% of female students and 45% of male students, from the capital city’s well-known educational institutions are crystal meth consumers.

Crystal methamphetamine, also called ice, is a drug which consists of colourless crystals of varying sizes and shapes that are used by smoking, insufflation and injecting into one’s body.

Speaking in Geo News’ show, Geo Pakistan, Khan said that the minister should have quoted an original source to back up his tall claim.

 “I have doubts over the statistics. If there had been such drugs consumption it would eventually lead to student brawls, which are not being seen,” he said.

Khan said that such massive-scale addiction is not possible due to the economic affordability of the students.

“Even children belonging to the elite class can’t afford to pay Rs2,000 daily for drugs,” he added. “The claims are simply lacking evidence.”

Meanwhile, Dr Fauzia Saeed, an expert on the issue, maintained that the drug consumption in the schools cannot be denied, but questioned the percentage quoted by the state minister.

“We can’t deny the presence of drugs. It’s very much present in the upper strata of the society but such percentage which is far from reality is creating panic in the society,” she said.

She denied the stats but emphasized on creating activities for the youth so that they don’t opt for drugs.

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Dr Sadaqat Ali, a medical practitioner known for his expertise on drugs consumption in Pakistan, rejected the stats and remarked that “the person who gave the statistics doesn’t know the drug problem in Pakistan.”

Speaking in Aaj Shahzeb Khanzada Kay Saath, he said that even schools in notorious areas of New York won’t have drug consumption over 10 percent. 

Designed to affect the user’s central nervous system, crystal meth offers an illusion of well being, and a burst of energy and confidence. The release of the chemical compound dopamine gives a false sense of happiness, while another component pseudoephedrine, also used in cough medicine, eases the mind. Its effects usually last between six to 24 hours

According to the Anti Narcotics Force, drug users in Pakistan spend an average of Rs230 per day on their addiction. Due to its relatively high price tag, crystal meth is commonly perceived to be the drug of choice for the higher socioeconomic groups.

The estimated cost of a kilogramme of Ice ranges anywhere from Rs650,000 to Rs1.1 million. In Peshawar, the purer form of Ice can cost up to Rs.8,000 per gram. Locally produced forms, known as ‘Lahori Ice’, go for Rs 1,500 or Rs. 2,500 per gram.

In Pakistan, crystal meth is mostly imported, although there are local labs that produce the substance as well. The ANF cracked down on the use of the drug after a meth lab in Karachi’s upscale Defence area exploded in 2015. But law enforcers have made little headway since then.