PESHAWAR: The famous Karkhano Market of Peshawar has become a sanctuary for drug addicts in the provincial capital where the abandoned Tokham–Peshawar railway track in front of Industrial Area Police picket can be seen with several groups of drug addicts consuming heroin freely in broad daylight.
The more ironic fact is that these drug addicts become aggressive at night time as reported by the local shopkeepers, who said that the addicts attack and rob the passerby with their infected sharp blades, knives and other tools to collect money to buy drugs for themselves.
They said that despite several complaints to Hayatabad Police Chowk Industrial Area police and ANF, no action was taken so far, adding that heroin and other drugs are being sold and consumed openly in Karkhano market, thus giving an impression that some influential people are behind them.
The shopkeepers of local markets, through a written complaint, said that the drug addicts consume heroin and other drugs on the railway track in groups, attracting the attention of passers-by especially children who often stop and watch the addicts.
Due to lukewarm attitude of police and anti-narcotics forces (ANF), the number of drug addicts is increasing day by day in Karkhano Market, posing a serious threat to locals including shopkeepers and customers who visit the market.
According to ANF, around seven million people in Pakistan are drug addicts including three million who use medicines without a prescription. As many as 700 people die every day in the country due to drug-related complications.
