Drug link: Psychedelic trance music banned in Hyderabad

By U Sudhakar Reddy
The city police has banned psychedelic trance music shows in pubs because they find that it encourages drug abuse. The Banjara Hills police recently warned a pub attached to a five-star hotel in the city not to play psychedelic trance music by an Israeli DJ.

According to West Zone deputy commissioner of police, Mr Stephen Raveendra, “Normal persons can’t enjoy psychedelic trance music; those who are high on drugs enjoy it. The music has certain sounds and beats that irk a regular person. Most drug abusers join these kinds of parties.”
Psychiatrist Dr Ramana Cherukuri says hallucinogenic drugs cause the user to see vivid colours and their senses become abnormally active. CCS DCP, Mr J. Satyanarayana, says cocaine, a popular party drug, is a stimulant that makes one euphoric and enhances sexual prowess.
Heroin, unlike cocaine, is a depressant and is cheaper than cocaine. Ecstasy is another drug popular with the upwardly mobile crowd. It comes in tablet or capsule form. The attraction of these drugs is the euphoric, relaxed or energetic state they induce, but the downside is that they can be lethal and addictive. Ecstasy, for example, can cause multiple organ failure from severe body overheating, short term memory loss, and compromise the immune system.

Drugs from Africa: Khat leaf in Hyderabad.

Khat leafy contraband a drug used as alternative for Amphetamine and Cocaine by the drug abusers was caught in the city. City Task Force police on Saturday arrested a Somalian national
and seized 11 kgs of Khat leaves smuggled into Hyderabad from Adis Ababa the Ethiopian capital.
The arrested accused identified as Ahmed Khadar Yousuf Elmi 38 a native of Mogadishu in Somalia was residing at Nizam Colony at Humayunagar.
Cops found that he was selling the Khat to leaf to city drug abusers and foreign nationals. The accused was smuggling in Khat leaf as vegetables in Air cargo from East African Countries to city via Mumbai.
Khat leaf is a stimulant and produces hallucinogenic affect on chewing.
Task Force Deputy Commissioner of Police Mr V B Kamalasan Reddy said that the Somalian came to India on tourist visa in 1995. He discontinued his studies in the faculty of Bachelor of commerce in
King Koti Pragati College. He was arrested in 2008 October by Humayunagar police for overstay and sent to jail. On bail he procured refugee certificate. Due to financial crisis he started procuring Khat leaf
and selling the contraband at the rate of Rs 1000 per bundle.

Mr Kamalasan Reddy said ,"Not only foreign nationals but also Hyderabadis got addicted to Khat leaves. The Khat leaves contain psycho active ingredients known as cathinone and cathine. Both these

chemicals come under Narcotic Drugs and Pyschotropic substances act purview,".

Khat is a flowering shrub, it has stimulant effect similar to that of cocaine. Khat leaves are grown in Somalia, Ethiopia and Yemen countries. Khat is taken by chewing the leaves and dried Khat leaves,

can we mixed in tea decoction. The user experiences immediate increase in blood pressure and heart beat rate. It has effect of mild depression, extreme thrust, insomnia etc. It also damages the nervous, respiratory, circulatory and digestive system. It is a illegal drug falls

under Schedule-I drug under the Controlled Substances Act.

West Zone Task Force inspector of Police Mr J Narsaiah said Khat leaf is grown by farmers in Somalia.

The sale proceeds of Khat leaf is the key sources for the terror funding in Somalia.

Drug controllers want Police powers to curb drug mafia

U Sudhakar Reddy

The Drug Control Administration (DCA) offi-cials in the state are not empowered to arrest drug traffickers and cannot book cases under the stringent Narcotic Drugs and Psy- chotropic Substances Act.
As such, drug peddlers go scot free as DCA’s hands are tied up due to legal con- straints. Drug controllers in the state want amendment to the Act empowering them in the wake of rising cases of diversion of pharma inter- mediary products for mak- ing narcotic drugs.
Only the police, the Direc- torate of Revenue Intelli- gence (DRI), Narcotic Drugs Control Bureau and customs officials are empowered under this act.
The DCA assistant direc- tor (Vigilance and Intelli- gence), Mr K. Rajabhanu, says, “to punish the offend- ers, a thorough investigation needs to be conducted and evidence collected to strengthen the prosecution.
As per the suggested amendment, the burden of proof shall lie with the person possessing alleged spurious drugs. This is already in vogue in UP West Bengal.” The state government has to notify granting powers to the drug inspectors on par with the police to enforce NDPS Act. Drug controllers are also demanding powers to arrest without warrant.
They have also asked for immunity from prosecution as the drug offenders are fil- ing false cases against the officials. Meanwhile, Cen- tral Drugs Standard Organi- sation has announced a reward scheme to curb the menace.