Youth, Independence, Generations and Issues walk like lovers, hand-in-hand, finds out Kritika Ajmani.
Youth and independence are a state of mind. Both come along with zeal and passion for living life to the fullest. The blast of energy that the young ones experience after getting f r e e d o m i s generally not used for most positive outcomes. This, in turn, takes the form of a widely used term, ‘generational issues’.A good rhetorical question that clicks is that, ‘Why is the whole concept of generational issues associated so typically with the independence of youth?’
Do we, the youth today, hide ourselves in the complacent threads of independence and misuse it or is it our former generations that misunderstand us? Both the scenarios are conflicting. Yet, they both stand firm in each of their own grounds.
Drug abuse is the most common and serious concern for our elders. The excuses given by the young ones to take to drugs are peer pressure, work tension or just the sheer satisfaction of losing oneself in this crowded world. None of these reasons can justify the abuse of drugs. A drug essentially means a medicine and drug abuse refers to the misuse of the same.
The Azad India Foundation revealed bizarre statistics on the issue of drug abuse:
• Around 190 million people around the world consume at least one drug.
• On official United Nation records, 1 million people are addicted to heroin in India. The unofficial figure goes to 5 million.
• Most drug users or addicts in India lie in the range of 18 to 35 years, taking the loss of human potential to dizzying heights.
• In India, by the time a boy is in the ninth grade, he has already tried a drug.
World Drug Report released in 2010, published by United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, states the following data for 2008:
• Total number of people in the age group of 18 to 64 years: 4,396 million
• Total number of people injecting themselves with drugs: 11 to 21 million
• Total number of people who come under the category of ‘Problem Drug Users’ (people who use a drug or medicine for medical purposes): 16 to 38 million The near-extinction of joint families is an important reason for children as young as 15 years going for substance abuse.
• Total number of people who have used drugs at least once in the year: 155 to 250 million
This intensity of drug abuse is, in turn, leading to an alarming rise in juvenile crime rate. Young people turn to stealing, either at home or outside, to sponsor their drugs, which are expensive. Drug-related crime involves to rape, molestation and murder. Abusive husbands indulge in domestic violence, torturing their wives for money to buy drugs or alcohol. The drug racket at the national level extends to trafficking, conspiracy, illegal money transfers and violence, threatening national security.
The near-extinction of joint families is an important reason for children as young as 15 years going for substance abuse. Children are no longer under constant parental guidance or under guidance of grandparents or other relatives. Children grow up in nuclear families, where both parents with high ambitions hold high-profile jobs. In most cases, these parents have a single child, which is all lonely.
Under these circumstances, who is to blame? There can be no argument to validate the use of drugs. But do the elders not have any responsibility towards their off springs? Yes, they earn for us. But is money more important than their children? Has the rat race forced us to take the road from where it may be impossible to return? Is it just the youth or is it the menace of today’s society as a whole that is responsible for the rise in drug abuse?
A social evil like drug abuse, especially among youth, should not just be read about.
The issue is far too grim to be only written about and forgotten. The youth and the older generation need to jointly identify the root of the problem and try solving it. Right from getting the people to kick off the habit to spreading awareness about the use and misuse of drugs, there is a long and rocky path that has to be traveled. Otherwise, 10 years down the line, there would be someone else penning an article on drug abuse and people would just be reading it because it exists.
