800 drug addicts rehabilitated in Balochistan
Drug addicts exercise at a gym in a rehabilitation complex in Quetta. Photo: Express
Over 800 drug addicts have been rehabilitated at a government-run rehabilitation center during the last year.
Most of the drug addicts were smoking heroin in Quetta and other parts of Balochistan, Abdul Latif Kakar, the Secretary of Social Welfare told The Express Tribune.
The Balochistan government had established a detoxification and rehabilitation complex for drug addicts in Quetta’s Eastern Bypass area.
“The government has evolved a strategy to rehabilitate drug addicts,” Kakar said. In Balochistan in general and Quetta city in particular, the number of heroin addicts has increased significantly.
The main nullah in the heart of Quetta city has been housing thousands of these addicts. The social welfare department provided medical treatment to the addicts during their stay in the rehabilitation center. The department also arranged counseling sessions for the addicts through well-known psychiatrists to convince the addicts to give up on drugs.
“Most of the addicts had started addiction because of unemployment and poverty,” Javed Baloch, the Chief of Detoxification and Rehabilitation Center said.
The curse of heroin was introduced in Balochistan with the aftermath of Afghan war in the early 1980s. Thousands of youth have fallen prey to the to it.
“At the complex, we arrange various sports activities for the addicts to help them quit drugs,” Baloch maintained.
At the complex, special uniform and dresses have been introduced for the addicts. The social welfare department has also provided sewing machines to the addicts so that they could stitch cloths and make a living for themselves.
“For me, this center proved to be a blessing,” Muhammad Khan, one of the rehabilitated persons said. Khan said the government had provided better food and taught skills.
Afghanistan’s Helmand province produces more than 90 per cent of the opium of the world. Most of the narcotics are smuggled through unfrequented routes of Balochistan to Gulf States, Iran, and European countries.
Published in The Express Tribune, April 27th, 2022.