Asia-Pacific

Half million heroin addicts in Pakistan: official

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2010-06-27 14:27

ISLAMABAD - There are an estimated half a million heroin addicts in Pakistan, of which nearly one-fifth, or 90,000, is in the country's northwestern province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, according to an official with Anti-Narcotics Force (ANF), a top anti-drug government body in Pakistan.

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Addressing a seminar held on Saturday in conjunction with International Day against Drug Abuse in Peshawar, capital city of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, ANF Regional Director Major Azam disclosed that over the last 15 years, ANF had seized hundreds of thousands of kilograms of hashish, heroin, opium and other narcotics while around 1,280 drug traffickers had been arrested.

According to the official, about 156,525 kilograms of hashish, 2,600 Kg of opium and 4,067 Kg of heroin had been seized in Pakistan since 1995. He said ANF has not only cracked down on drug smuggling but also provided free treatment to drug addicts in the main cities across the country.

ANF is committed to ridding the society of drugs, he said, adding that ANF has recently launched a campaign which includes holding of seminars and lectures for the young students both at girls and boys schools and colleges in the country.