Punjab panel questions rising Buprenorphine procurement, de-addiction success

In the Indian state of Punjab, the government gives a medicine called Buprenorphine to help people stop using dangerous drugs.

Over the last four and a half years, the state has bought a very large number of these tablets.

The number of people going to special drug treatment clinics has also grown, from about 2 lakh to more than 3 lakh.

Some members of the state assembly are not sure this is working well.

They ask: are people really getting better, or are they just depending on a new medicine?

The health officials say the medicine is safe, like medicine for long-term illnesses such as diabetes.

But the committee says the government cannot say how many people have completely quit drugs.

It also found that some patients misuse the medicine by injecting it.

The government says more tablets are used now because treatment is expanding, especially inside prisons.

The committee says success should be measured by people stopping drugs forever, not by how many tablets are bought.