India: Children in Karnataka Prone to Alcohol, Tobacco Abuse

Source from:  India Tribune  04/24/2014

Alcohol and tobacco are the most common psychoactive substances that children in Karnataka prefer to use, a national survey on substance-using children has revealed.

The study, which covered children aged between 5 and 18, found that 88.9 percent of the kids surveyed in Karnataka consumed alcohol. The state accounted for 81.1 percent in tobacco use, 24.4 percent in cannabis, 27.8 percent in inhalants and 2.2 percent in heroin.

Karnataka topped the country in alcohol consumption among the surveyed group, followed by Andhra Pradesh (84.7 percent), Haryana (80 percent) and Chandigarh (79.3 percent). In tobacco use, Karnataka ranks only after Tamil Nadu (86.3 percent) among south Indian states, and 11th in the country.

The findings were published in a 2013 study by the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) called 'Assessment of Pattern and Profile of Substance Use Among Children in India'. It was conducted on 4,024 substance-using children in the average age of 13 to 17 in 27 states and two Union Territories. Enditem