At a talk on the rise of drug use among students at the Ziauddin University, Dr Salman Shehzad, a professor of clinical psychology at the University of Karachi, revealed a World Bank report of 2019 reported that around 43% of the Pakistani youth are frequent users of drugs, alcohol and other narcotic substances.
Shehzad further revealed that in the northern areas, around 44% of Pakistani children are consumers of alcohol.
According to the Express News, the talk revolved around addressing the alarming rise of drugs among students, with medical experts warning that frequent use of such items will greatly impact the academic performance as well as mental health of students.
Discussions at the conference
The Chancellor of Ziauddin University Dr Nida Hussain said that it was important for academics and parents to be aware about the alarming rise of drug usage among the students in educational institutions because this could impact their lives permanently. Dr Hussain said it was disheartening to witness how educational institutions were being used as distribution centres to distribute drugs to students.
Furthermore, Dr Sara Jahangir, the Head of the psychology department at Ziauddin University, said that it was important for parents to recognise the signs that their child was using drugs, and to immediately look for good counselling services to help them.
Former member of the Islamic Ideological Council and Islamic scholar Dr Umeer Mahmood Siddiqui said children should learn how to strengthen their relationship with Allah so that with the help of spiritual guidance, they can learn to resist drug addiction.
Former Pakistani cricketer Sikandar Bakht was also present at the talk, where he spoke about the importance for parents to strengthen their relationship with their children. Children can only stay away from drugs if parents educated them about the consequences illegal drugs can have on their academic performance and mental health.
