Drug addicts in five states including Punjab are spending up to Rs 2,000 a day for buying and consuming narcotics with over 70 per cents of the addicts falling in the age group of 15 to 35 years, a study has revealed.
The study sponsored by the Indian Council for Social Science Research (ICSSR) identified peer pressure, unemployment and easy availability of drugs as some of the key factors behind the drug menace that, it said, poses grave threat to the social, economic and political stability of the society.
The study was conducted by the Chandigarh-based Centre for Research in Rural and Industrial Development on the topic of 'Dynamics of Drug Addiction and Abuse in North West India: Social, Economic and Political implications.'