As the political debate over Punjab’s drug crisis intensifies, two brothers—aged 9 and 12 years—have fallen victim to ‘chitta’ (synthetic drugs) in a Kapurthala village.
Subsequent dope tests for both brothers came back positive. The brothers, both school dropouts, are raised by a single mother who works as a daily-wager. He is accused of introducing children to drugs and filming them during consumption. There is typically no peer pressure among kids this young. Irrespective of socio-economic status—from bureaucrats to daily wagers—parents must monitor who their children spend time with and who influences them.
The issue surfaced on Wednesday after a video showing the 9-year-old openly consuming drugs went viral on social media, forcing the police into action. The 9-year-old was later sent to the drug de-addiction centre at the Government Medical College in Amritsar, while his elder brother will receive treatment at the Kapurthala civil hospital. The case has put the police and civil administration on the back foot at a time when the state government claims to be tackling drug abuse on a war-footing through its 60-day campaign, Yudh Nashean Virudh. Police have arrested the accused peddler, Paramjit Singh, 32, a resident of New Shanti Nagar in Hoshiarpur’s Islamabad area. A case has been registered at the Subhanpur police station under the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015, and Section 29/61/85 of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act. The incident comes amid the Punjab government’s 60-day anti-drug drive targeting 435 identified hotspots. Based on intelligence inputs, village defence committees, and district assessments, police have mapped 2,913 listed peddlers and 312 major suppliers across these clusters.
Commenting on the incident, Punjabi University, Patiala, psychology professor Damanjit Sandhu said, “At this age, children lack fully developed decision-making abilities. Kapurthala police rushed the boys to the local civil hospital on Thursday.
