Sindh to begin random drug testing in schools, says Sharjeel Memon

KARACHI: Senior Sindh Minister Sharjeel Inam Memon on Sunday said the provincial government would carry out rapid random drug testing in schools as part of efforts to address rising narcotics use among children.

Speaking to the media in Karachi, Memon said the issue of drug abuse had not been treated with the seriousness it required. He described narcotics as a global problem and said it had become a major concern across Pakistan as well.

Unfortunately, we have not taken narcotics seriously.

Memon said the Sindh government was also working on establishing several rehabilitation centres, but added that the situation remained a challenge for the authorities.

Referring to a recent incident in Karachi, the minister said a child addicted to drugs had opened fire on family members. He cited the episode while underscoring the dangers linked to narcotics use among minors and the wider social consequences of addiction.

When these people become zombies due to narcotics, they go beyond anyone’s control.

he said.

The senior minister said narcotics had been turned into a profitable trade by many people and stressed that it was the government’s responsibility to break the network involved in the business.

I do not want to name anyone, but this is an entire network.

Memon said, adding that naming individuals would only result in social media memes.

He also mentioned a suspect identified as Anmol alias Pinky, describing her as a woman involved in selling poison that was claiming precious lives every day.

Memon urged the media not to glamorise the issue and said parents currently bore the greatest responsibility in protecting children from drug abuse. He said the matter should not be seen as the concern of a single administration alone, but of the whole country.

I am not talking about one government alone, but the entire country.

he added.

Government response and wider concern

Memon’s remarks linked the proposed school testing initiative with broader concerns over the spread of narcotics and the need for both enforcement and rehabilitation measures. He said the government was developing rehabilitation facilities while also acknowledging the scale of the challenge.

He also called for restraint in media coverage of the issue, saying the problem should not be presented in a way that glamorises drug use. Alongside the state’s role in dismantling trafficking networks, he said parents had the biggest responsibility at present in shielding children from addiction.

The minister’s comments highlighted the Sindh government’s plan to respond to the issue through random testing in educational institutions and the development of rehabilitation centres, while framing narcotics abuse as a national concern rather than a problem limited to one province or one government.