The Punjab government Tuesday said government drug de-addiction centres in the state had seen a “whopping increase” in out-patient department (OPD) visits and indoor patients after March 16, when the Congress formed the new government in the state. As per the new figures released by the government about the drug de-addiction centres, there were 18,440 OPD visits from March 16-April 26. “The increase over the average monthly OPD of 2016 stood at 48.1 per cent, while the indoor patients in the same period had increased 103 per cent to 1,446 across the state,” the statement said. “There were huge numbers also being reported from the private centres and hospitals, endorsing the massive success of the Captain Amarinder government’s concerted crackdown on the drugs mafia in the state.” A government spokesperson said Punjab had seen a “massive increase in drugs-related cases, arrests and seizures in the last two weeks of April.” “Recovery of poppy husk has almost tripled. Similarly, recovery of the medicinal drugs has also tripled in this period,” the statement said, adding that “with drug supplies getting choked, prices of whatever little was available in the market had shot through the roof, putting it out of the reach of the people.”
