Context
Recently, the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) has launched the World Drug Report 2024.
About
- The World Drug Report is published annually by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime.
- The first file was published in 1997, the same year the organization was established.
- The World Drug Report affords an annual evaluation of the essential traits in drug markets for the diverse drug classes, ranging from production to trafficking, which includes development of latest routes and modalities, in addition to consumption.
Major Findings
- Increase in Use of Drug: There has been a concerning rise in global drug use, the drug customers global are numbering 292 million in 2022 that is a 20 percent boom over the past decade.
- Most used Drug: Cannabis remains the most widely used drug globally.
- It is observed by opioids, amphetamines, cocaine, and ecstasy.
- Treatment: Only one in 11 people suffering from drug use issues gets a remedy.
- This is in spite of the reality that an estimated 64 million humans internationally are afflicted by such issues.
- Women, particularly, face enormous boundaries, with only one in 18 women with drug use issues receiving treatment in comparison to one in seven men.
- Drug trafficking empowers organised crime organizations, which are diversifying into other unlawful economies, which include flora and fauna trafficking, monetary fraud, and unlawful resource extraction.
- Global opium production fell by 74 percent in 2023, following a drastic 95 percent lower in Afghanistan’s opium production in 2023 and a 36 percent increase in Myanmar.
- Both nations are main centers of the global trade in narcotics.
- Measures to be Taken: Evidence-based prevention programmes provide human beings, specially young people, the expertise and abilities they want to avoid drug use.
- A comprehensive strategy is wanted to deal with drug use and its outcomes.
- This calls for prevention, remedy, and the strengthening of regulation enforcement to disrupt the criminal networks cashing in on those illicit sports.
Initiatives Taken in opposition to Illegal Drug Abuse
- Global Initiatives
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- United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC): The UNODC is at the forefront of the global fight in opposition to illicit capsules. The UNODC-led campaign aims to elevate attention about the risks of drug abuse.
- International Narcotics Control Board (INCB): The INCB monitors the global drug situation and assesses countries’ compliance with international drug manage treaties.
- Paris Pact Initiative: This initiative specializes in preventing the trafficking of Afghan opiates, which might be a major supply of illicit drugs globally.
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- Indian Initiatives:
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- Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985 (NDPS Act): Comprehensive rules provides the felony framework for drug control in India. It prohibits the production, possession, sale, and intake of illicit tablets and prescribes consequences for violations.
- Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB): The NCB is the nodal organization responsible for drug regulation enforcement in India. It coordinates with diverse state and imperative groups to fight drug trafficking and abuse.
- Nasha Mukt Bharat Abhiyaan: Launched in 2020, this marketing campaign targets to create attention about the ill results of drug abuse and sell a drug-free India. It makes a speciality of network outreach, education, and rehabilitation applications.
- Anti-Narcotics Task Force (ANTF): Many states have established ANTFs to reinforce drug law enforcement at the state level.
Source: The ToI
UPSC Mains Practice Question
Q. “India is one of the major hubs of illicit drug trade.” Discuss the statement in the light of drug abuse issues in India. (150 words)
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