New Delhi (Sputnik) — Adulterated heroin mixed with another substance locally named "Cut" has been taking at least one life per day in the northern state of Punjab for the last month, according to media reports. In that time, 23 people- mainly young aged boys — have died within a few seconds of injecting the "Cut." The menace caught the attention of the media and the administration after a heart-wrenching video of a woman crying next to the dead body of her son, a drug addict, went viral on social media.
This is what DRUGS addiction is doing to Punjab Youth..
— Aarti (@aartic02) June 27, 2018
Horrific!!
But the Punjab Govt is in Slumber. #कांग्रेस_राज_में_उड़ता_पंजाब pic.twitter.com/C8e5SIPTB0
"These deaths have apparently happened from the street-level peddling of drugs. We have cut the main supply lines, resulting in a decreased flow of heroin and other drugs. We are analyzing each death," Harpreet Sidhu, ADGP-cum-Director, Special Task Force, told The Tribune.
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As per government records, the state police of Punjab have arrested 18,800 peddlers, with a total of 16,305 cases registered, in the period from March 16, 2017, to June 24, 2018. Seizures in this period amounted to 377,787 kilograms of heroin and 116,603 kilograms of Charas.