NCJ Number
164523
Date Published
1996
Length
13 pages
Annotation
The experience of Manipur, India with juvenile drug use and HIV infection demonstrates that every community, including those with strong and durable traditional protective values, needs to recognize that it is not isolated from the potential devastation resulting from widespread drug use by youth and the subsequent involvement in crime.
Abstract
Manipur is located in the northeast region of India and has become a marketplace for heroin and the drugs processed in and transported from the Golden Triangle. People in Manipur have used marijuana, opium, and alcohol for centuries, but drug injection is a more recent phenomenon and is an especially serious problem among males ages 15-30. Injection has increased the risk of HIV, which came to India and the rest of Asia later than it did to other regions. The spread of drug use and AIDS is linked inextricably to sociocultural and economic factors. Manipur has recently established community-based intervention programs, which are funded by international agencies. These include the dissemination of risk reduction messages and educational materials together with condoms and bleach kits. Drop-in centers have also been established for injecting drug users and their sexual partners to acquire information, condoms, and bleach kits. 17 references