The widespread crackdown on ganja in and around Hyderabad for over a month is restricting peddlers from indulging in selling the contraband.
And since ganja is in short supply now, the regular users will find it difficult to get their dose. This calls for the services of de-addiction centres that help people get over the ‘bad’ habit.
Free de-addiction services are provided at the Institute of Mental Health (IMH) in Erragadda. A few private health facilities in the city too, provide these services.
Starting from the main suppliers to the peddlers, who deal in small quantities, Telangana Police and Prohibition & Excise department officials are trying to catch everyone.
In an attempt to give a picture of how intense the crackdown is, sources in the Excise department said that they are even going after peddlers who deal with a few packets of ganja.
“If someone tries to peddle, he will be caught. And many were held,” said sources in the department. The crackdown is going on in Hyderabad, Cyberabad and Rachakonda police commissionerates.
The Excise department’s Enforcement (Hyderabad) wing superintendent N. Anji Reddy said that apart from the regular users, who cannot spend a single day without ganja, they have come across youngsters who started taking ganja recently.
“The recent users will be deterred, since it is next to impossible to buy ganja now. We offer counselling to those caught with ganja or while trying to buy it. In the case of regular users, guardians or parents of the youngsters should get them to the de-addiction centres,” he said.
Superintendent of IMH Dr. Umashankar said that addiction to cannabis is more psychological than physical.“It takes around two weeks to bring the withdrawal effects (of cannabis) under control. Thereafter, we offer psychological treatment,” he said.
There is a regular flow of people addicted to ganja who opt the services at IMH, which also help patients addicted to alcohol, morphine, and benzodiazepines.
