{"id":30242,"date":"2026-09-29T11:19:43","date_gmt":"2026-09-29T11:19:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/?p=30242"},"modified":"2026-09-29T11:19:43","modified_gmt":"2026-09-29T11:19:43","slug":"pills-needles-loopholes-cops-battle-prescription-drug-abuse-in-chennai-chennai-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/?p=30242","title":{"rendered":"Pills, needles, loopholes: Cops battle prescription drug abuse in Chennai | Chennai News"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<div class=\"e9jwa\">\n<div class=\"vdo_embedd\">\n<div class=\"GfdvZ\">\n<section class=\"_bIDB  clearfix id-r-component leadmedia undefined undefined  E9tg9 \" style=\"top:0px\">\n<div class=\"_bIDB\" data-ua-type=\"1\" onclick=\"stpPgtnAndPrvntDefault(event)\">\n<div class=\"ypVvZ\">\n<div class=\"WGttI\"><img src=\"https:\/\/static.toiimg.com\/thumb\/msid-134548725,imgsize-2464188,width-400,height-225,resizemode-75\/134548725.jpg\" alt=\"Pills, needles, loopholes: Cops battle prescription drug abuse in Chennai\" title=\"A significant rise in prescription drug abuse, particularly Tapentadol and Nitrazepam, is troubling authorities. Police have identified specific injection marks on youths, indicating drug misuse. Despite increased seizures, enforcement laws struggle to address the issue effectively. Traffickers have adapted their methods, moving to underground networks to evade detection. Efforts are ongoing to strengthen the legal framework surrounding these drugs and improve supply chain monitoring.\" decoding=\"async\" fetchpriority=\"high\"\/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"Ta7d_ img_cptn\"><span title=\"A significant rise in prescription drug abuse, particularly Tapentadol and Nitrazepam, is troubling authorities. Police have identified specific injection marks on youths, indicating drug misuse. Despite increased seizures, enforcement laws struggle to address the issue effectively. Traffickers have adapted their methods, moving to underground networks to evade detection. Efforts are ongoing to strengthen the legal framework surrounding these drugs and improve supply chain monitoring.\">A significant rise in prescription drug abuse, particularly Tapentadol and Nitrazepam, is troubling authorities. Police have identified specific injection marks on youths, indicating drug misuse. Despite increased seizures, enforcement laws struggle to address the issue effectively. Traffickers have adapted their methods, moving to underground networks to evade detection. Efforts are ongoing to strengthen the legal framework surrounding these drugs and improve supply chain monitoring.<\/span><\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>A series of tiny injection marks on youngsters\u2019 wrists and arms has become a tell-tale sign for police chasing the city\u2019s growing prescription-drug menace. Three suspected overdose deaths in the city recently have turned the spotlight on the misuse of prescription drugs such as Tapentadol and Nitrazepam, with some of these tablets popularly referred to as \u201cDol\u201d among users.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"2\"\/>Enforcement Bureau-CID (EB-CID) seized 9.86 lakh tablets across Tamil Nadu till Aug this year, nearly 12 times the volume seized during the same period last year. Even so, officers say the law has not kept pace with changing patterns of abuse.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"4\"\/>At the centre of the enforcement challenge is Tapentadol, an opioid painkiller. Unlike Nitrazepam, a benzodiazepine covered under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, Tapentadol is a prescription drug not scheduled as a narcotic drug or psychotropic substance under the Act. <!-- -->So, its possession or trafficking does not automatically attract stringent NDPS provisions. Violations involving its illegal sale are primarily dealt with under drug-control laws, creating enforcement hurdles for police.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"9\"\/>Meanwhile, the supply chain adapts continuously. Initially, dealers procured tablets through online platforms. After the police issued summons to some portals, they stopped listing the products. The trade then went underground.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"13\"\/>An officer attached to the Anti-Narcotics Intelligence Unit said some dealers identify customers placing bulk orders for other medicines online and later contact them to negotiate separate deals for prescription tablets, leaving fewer digital trails.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"15\"\/>Consignments arrive mainly by train from Pune, Hyderabad, Bengaluru, and Haryana. Police said couriers use Perambur, Arakkonam and Renigunta as drop-off points. <!-- -->Chennai Central also figured in investigations as a transit point. Some of them also use courier firms.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"19\"\/>Police said a carton of 100 tablets costing \u20b9900 through legitimate channels fetches about \u20b94,500 in the illegal market. At the street level, individual tablets fetch \u20b9300, potentially taking a carton\u2019s value to \u20b930,000.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"21\"\/>What worries sleuths more is the way the tablets are consumed. Some crush or dissolve the pills and inject the solution directly into their veins for a quick high. <!-- -->Some use saline water, while others use tap water, adding another layer of health risk.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"25\"\/>Tapentadol, particularly when misused, can dangerously slow down breathing. \u201cTablets contain binders and fillers that may not dissolve in water. When injected, these particles can lodge in tiny blood vessels in the lungs, causing inflammation and scarring and, in severe cases, can prove fatal,\u201d said Dr S Chandrasekar, head of the department of medicine, Stanley Medical College and Hospital.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"29\"\/>During checks, police look for injection marks on the arms of suspected users. Such marks have helped investigators identify users and work backwards through the supply chain to reach street-level peddlers and larger suppliers.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"31\"\/>Police officers have sought a stronger legal framework to tackle the issue. \u201cThe sharp increase in seizures reflects stricter enforcement. At the same time, our focus has moved beyond seizures to the entire supply chain, from major suppliers and wholesalers to financiers, transporters, distributors and those providing storage facilities,\u201d said EB-CID ADGP K Shankar.<\/div>\n<p><br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/timesofindia.indiatimes.com\/city\/chennai\/pills-needles-loopholes-cops-battle-prescription-drug-abuse-in-chennai\/articleshow\/134548725.cms\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A significant rise in prescription drug abuse, particularly Tapentadol and Nitrazepam, is troubling authorities. Police have identified specific injection marks on youths, indicating drug misuse. Despite increased seizures, enforcement laws struggle to address the issue effectively. Traffickers have adapted their methods, moving to underground networks to evade detection. Efforts are ongoing to strengthen the legal [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":30243,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[31],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-30242","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-31"],"magazineBlocksPostFeaturedMedia":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/134548725.jpg","medium":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/134548725.jpg","medium_large":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/134548725.jpg","large":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/134548725.jpg","1536x1536":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/134548725.jpg","2048x2048":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/134548725.jpg","blogsy-small":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/134548725.jpg","blogsy-small-tall":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/134548725.jpg","blogsy-small-square":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/134548725.jpg","blogsy-small-masonry":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/134548725.jpg","blogsy-medium":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/134548725.jpg","blogsy-medium-masonry":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/134548725.jpg","blogsy-large":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/134548725.jpg","blogsy-wide":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/134548725.jpg"},"magazineBlocksPostAuthor":{"name":"admin","avatar":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/8709732a479614e7a8aa24d3eb1b239f30dc6d90c61464ed495001e7a469d856?s=96&d=mm&r=g"},"magazineBlocksPostCommentsNumber":"0","magazineBlocksPostExcerpt":"A significant rise in prescription drug abuse, particularly Tapentadol and Nitrazepam, is troubling authorities. Police have identified specific injection marks on youths, indicating drug misuse. Despite increased seizures, enforcement laws struggle to address the issue effectively. Traffickers have adapted their methods, moving to underground networks to evade detection. Efforts are ongoing to strengthen the legal [&hellip;]","magazineBlocksPostCategories":["\u0b26\u0b47\u0b36 \u0b2c\u0b3f\u0b26\u0b47\u0b36"],"magazineBlocksPostViewCount":2,"magazineBlocksPostReadTime":3,"magazine_blocks_featured_image_url":{"full":["https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/134548725.jpg",400,224,false],"medium":["https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/134548725.jpg",300,168,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/134548725.jpg",150,84,false]},"magazine_blocks_author":{"display_name":"admin","author_link":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/author\/admin"},"magazine_blocks_comment":0,"magazine_blocks_author_image":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/8709732a479614e7a8aa24d3eb1b239f30dc6d90c61464ed495001e7a469d856?s=96&d=mm&r=g","magazine_blocks_category":"<a href=\"#\" class=\"category-link category-link-31\">\u0b26\u0b47\u0b36 \u0b2c\u0b3f\u0b26\u0b47\u0b36<\/a>","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30242","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=30242"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30242\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/30243"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=30242"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=30242"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=30242"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}