Video of 2 youths high on drugs raise fentanyl fears in Aizawl

AIZAWL: A viral video of two youths getting high on drugs in Aizawl has sent social media into a tizzy, with many posts claiming that fentanyl has entered Mizoram.
However, the Mizoram excise & narcotic department officials ruled out any such possibility.
"So far as our knowledge is concerned, fentanyl has not entered Mizoram. We have not made any seizure of the drug," an official of the department said.
The official said they have seen the video and the youths shown in it were habitual heroin users.
What made some people suspect that the two youths were high on fentanyl must be their behaviour that looked similar to that of fentanyl users, or for that matter, zombie drugs users in some US streets, the videos of which have flooded Youtube.
The official said heroin, which most drug addicts use in Mizoram, works differently on different people.
"If a particular heroin abuser acts differently when getting high, that does not mean that he is on some other drugs. Generally, when a heroin user mixes it with other drugs, he shows different signs, compared to those using only heroin," he added.
Dr Chawnglungmuana, director of the drug rehab centre SHALOM, said they have not detected fentanyl in Mizoram.
"We have been alert since the last two years. We closely monitor our patients and inmates. We have not detected any fentanyl entering Mizoram," he said.