InDepth | How Punjab's 'Chitta' Took Over Himachal Pradesh

It was about a decade ago when chitta—the street name for synthetic heroin—arrived in Hima­chal Pradesh, possibly through the border with Punjab. Very quickly, the costly drug with severe mind-numbing effects started see­ping into the veins of men and women, boys and girls and into cities as well as vill­ages in remote valleys lining the Himalayan border, making a large section of the population addicted.Addiction created a dangerous nexus of drug peddlers whose distribution network has not spared even the tribal belt and young children. Chitta being found in the school bags in remote villages has been the most disturbing trend.

The scenic state of Himachal Pradesh never thought its drug problem would turn into an epidemic. It has got out of hand, turning into a severe social, public health and security crisis.

In the 1990s, when the state started welcoming tourists looking for options beyond militancy-ridden Kashmir, the idea was to build an economy woven around tourism. The roads and highways brought lakhs of tourists, both domestic and international, but along with that, drugs also started entering the state.

The drug landscape, however, changed completely a decade ago with the arrival of chitta and other synthetic drugs. A study by the psychiatry department of the Indira Gandhi Medical College in Shimla revealed that more than 31 per cent of youths, including 9-11 per cent girls, in the state are involved in substance abuse, mainly chitta.

“Punjab’s drug epidemic has not just spilled into Himachal, it has breached the walls of colleges and universities and has reached schoolchildren in the remotest villages of Mandi, Chamba, Kullu, Bilas­pur, Sirmaur, Kinnaur and Shimla,” says O.P. Sharma, who was earlier associated with the Narcotics Control Bureau.

The state has always been a fertile ground for narcotics. The cannabis grown in some of the high-altitude areas of Manali was in vogue even before chitta. The ancient village of Malana—out of bounds for law-enforcement agencies but frequented by tourists—is famous for ‘Malana cream’, which is in high demand in the local and international markets.

However, what is happening now is sinister, threatening the social fabric and the law-and-order situation of the state. Once people become addicts, they are roped into the peddlers’ network on the promise of “free” doses. The network, thus, keeps on growing.

Peddlers’ Network

In June, the state police arrested a 21-year-old alleged interstate heroin distributor who concealed narcotics in empty snack and milk packets. Operating from Shimla, the accused enabled contactless drug deliveries by hiding the packets and sending location videos to buyers upon payment confirmation.

The arrest was part of a widespread crackdown on peddlers, which the police believe are no longer just locals. Police investigations point to a strong link to Punjab. Many of the peddlers and several alleged kingpins arrested recently are from the border districts of Amritsar, Tarn Taran and Gurdaspur. Investigators found that local traffickers frequently travelled to these districts to collect heroin consignments before transporting them into Himachal.

Multiple arrests show how the interstate gangs operate—they have a network of local peddlers, consisting mostly of youths, women and criminals, who work as conduits to maintain a supply chain to identified drug addicts and also lure new customers. Some peddlers are also addicts. They draw their own families into drug abuse and trafficking. Instances of women used as couriers by their husbands have been documented by the police.

Music, Mountains, Marijuana

Many regions in Himachal are now struggling to strike a balance between tourism and their reputation as rave party destinations. Kasol, or “mini-Israel”, is one such spot. Once a carefree Himalayan pit stop for backpackers, it is now a go-to place for rave parties. Foreign tourists create exclusive spaces in the mountains where music and marijuana flow; Indian tourists follow their trail.

“Rave parties in Kullu’s high-altitude and forested valleys and on the banks of the Parvati River are a routine that continues to challenge law enforcement agencies due to police collusion,” says Aditya Kant, a Kullu-based journalist and the author of High on Kasol. The high court recently pulled up the state government for allowing a rave party in Kasol where a Russian model and DJ died, allegedly due to an overdose.

Social, Political Implications

In April, a 19-year-old college student was brutally hacked to death on her way to college by a 36-year-old man, who was allegedly a drug addict. Last year, a 40-year-old woman succumbed to grievous injuries after being brutally attacked in the fields of Sasan village in Hamirpur. The perpetrator, who attempted to sexually assault her, was identified as a 14-year-old school student, prompting debates whether he was under the influence of drugs.

Instances of youth indulging in petty crimes and violence against family members to extract money to buy drugs are on the rise. Apart from drug addiction leading to mental-health issues, deaths related to drug overdose are also common. As per the state government data, 66 people died of overdoses in the past three years. The actual figure is believed to be higher. “Families often choose not to disclose the cause of death because of the social stigma attached to drug addiction,” says Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLA Randhir Sharma.

To contain the drug problem, Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu started the ‘anti-chitta’ movement last year. Talking about the three-pronged strategy to tackle the drug problem, Sukhu tells Outlook: “The first step is a crackdown on the drug mafia. Second, mass public awareness involving parents, students, village panchayats and NGOs. Third is to strengthen rehabilitation and de-addiction to help drug addicts to reintegrate into society.” (See page 20)

Dismissing the state’s anti-drug awareness campaign as a publicity exercise, BJP’s Sharma claims that peddlers enjoy political and official patronage. Talking about the “few bad fish in any organisation”, Ashok Tewari, state Director General of Police, tells Outlook: “The government has dismissed 31 employees, including 22 police personnel. There is zero tolerance for any official found complicit in the drug trade.” (See page 22).

The police have, for the first time, detained 174 persons under the Prevention of Illicit Traffic in Narcotics Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, which allows for the preventive detention of individuals involved in drug trafficking. Apart from stringent legislation and mandatory chitta dope testing, the government has set up a dedicated special task force and sanctioned funds for new state-of-the-art de-addiction and rehabilitation centres. It remains to be seen if the efforts pay off.

Ashwani Sharma is a journalist based out of Shimla