• In India, with over a billion people, 62.5 million consume alcohol, 8.75 million use cannabis, 2 million use opiates, and 600,000 use sedatives or hypnotics.

• 17-26% are dependent users needing urgent treatment, according to the report. Around 25% of opiate and cannabis users seek treatment, while about one in six alcohol drinkers do as well.

• Gary Lewis, the South Asia representative of the UN Office on Drugs and Crime, stated, "The myth that drug abuse is solely an urban issue is false; injecting drugs and high-risk behaviors occur in both urban and rural areas.”

Kumar S. (2004). India has widespread drug problem, report says. BMJ (Clinical research ed.), 329(7456), 14. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.329.7456.14-h