India, US to jointly check spread of synthetic drugs

New Delhi, July 21

The US hosted the fourth annual meeting of the Counternarcotics Working Group (CNWG) with India.

According to the hosts, the US State Department, the two delegations addressed drug regulatory issues, law enforcement cooperation and collaboration, coordination in multilateral fora, and drug demand reduction efforts.

This was the first CNWG after US Secretary of State Antony Blinken launched the Global Coalition to Address Synthetic Drug Threats earlier this month. The two delegations also discussed recommended actions on advancing the US-India drug policy relationship for the coming year, said a State Department release.

The meeting was attended by representatives from top officials from both India and the US, including  Narcotics Control Bureau Director-General SN Pradhan, Under Secretary for Civilian Security, Democracy, and Human Rights Uzra Zeya, Director of National Drug Control Policy Rahul Gupta, and Lisa Johnson from the US Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs. The two ambassadors, Taranjit Singh Sandhu and Eric Garcetti also attended the meeting.

Zeya said synthetic drugs require a global solution as they significantly and directly impact the populations of both India, US and also countries around the world, claiming countless lives and perpetuating harmful stigma for those who live with addiction.

India is a global leader in the chemical and pharmaceutical industry, and consequently is a critical, global leader in combating the spread of synthetic drugs, she added while calling for prevention of the spread of fentanyl and other synthetics in our countries and abroad.

Fentanyl is considered a highly potent synthetic opioid, which is primarily used as an analgesic. Since 2018, fentanyl and its analogues have led to the most drug overdose deaths in the US.

As reported by The Tribune earlier, the grouping stopped the shipment of over 500 packages to the US from India containing illicit prescription drugs, medical devices, and synthetic precursors.