Disclosure to LHC says nearly 3,900 inmates tested drug-positive in province-wide screening
Over 71,000 prisoners and under-trials are currently held across Punjab’s 45 jails, including 68,570 men and 1,310 women. PHOTO: FILE
LAHORE:
Inmates in Punjab’s jails have been smuggling narcotics by concealing them in sensitive parts of their bodies, the Punjab Prisons Department told the Lahore High Court in a disclosure submitted as part of a court-ordered review on Tuesday.
The disclosure forms part of a departmental report prepared after the court directed a province-wide screening to identify drug-dependent prisoners in jails across Punjab.
The department said the screening process was introduced under a formal mechanism and is carried out at the time of a prisoner’s admission. It cited the United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners, known as the Nelson Mandela Rules, as part of the framework followed.
The Nelson Mandela Rules guide prison management, focusing on humane treatment of prisoners and respect for human rights.
According to the report, screenings conducted between January 1 and October 31, 2025, identified 3,873 inmates as drug users. During the same period, a total of 10,166 tests were conducted, with 6,293 returning negative results and the remainder testing positive.
The department said ice (crystal meth), hashish and amphetamines were the most commonly used drugs among inmates. It added that “modern rapid drug test kits” were being used, capable of detecting substances including methamphetamine, tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), amphetamine, benzodiazepines, methadone, MDMA, phenylpropylamine and tricyclic antidepressants.
To manage the issue, the report said separate blocks have been set up in every jail for inmates addicted to drugs. To prevent the inflow of narcotics, authorities have also decided to install body scanners in jails.
The report highlighted wider systemic pressures on Punjab’s prison system, stating that 72% of inmates are under-trial prisoners. It put the total prison population at 70,739 and said an average of 7,500 inmates are produced before courts every day.
It recommended assigning responsibility for the rehabilitation and social reintegration of drug-addicted inmates to the Health Department and the Social Welfare Department, stressing the need to prioritise treatment alongside enforcement.
Other recommendations included tighter surveillance of prisoners during court escorts, limiting their interaction with relatives and friends, and proper training of prison staff in substance abuse treatment and mental health care.
The report also called for higher budget allocations for drug testing kits, coordination between the Health and Population Department and Social Welfare for rehabilitation efforts, legal reclassification of drug addicts as a separate category of prisoners, and the establishment of detoxification centres.
