TOXICOLOGICAL & FORENSIC ASPECT OF DRUG ABUSE AND

ALCOHOL

Submitted By: Submitted To:

Meetali Rawat Mr. Shubham Srivastava
Roll no: 628 Faculty- Forensics & Crime
Sem: X ‘A’ NUSRL, Ranchi

NATIONAL UNIVERSITY OF STUDY AND RESEARCH IN LAW, RANCHI

2020
Contents

INTRODUCTION.......................................................................................................................................3

TOXICOLOGY...........................................................................................................................................4

METABOLISM OF TOXIC SUSBSTANCE.............................................................................................5

NARCOTIC POISONING..........................................................................................................................5

Alcohol Intoxication....................................................................................................................................9

DEATH IN ACUTE ALCOHOL POISONING........................................................................................11

LEGAL ASPECT......................................................................................................................................12

INDIAN LAWS........................................................................................................................................12

Conclusion.................................................................................................................................................16

BIBLIOGRAPHY.....................................................................................................................................16
INTRODUCTION

A poison is defined as a chemical that can sicken or kill another organism. An ideal poison is one
that is effective in a very small dose and difficult to detect. Poisoning has been used by man for
murder and suicide as long as recorded history. The Egyptians and the Greeks knew that certain
plants have capacity to inflict death on a victim. Around the year 200 B.C., a Greek handbook on
poisons was written; it discussed in an informed way the poisonous qualities of opium, henbane,
some fungi, aconite and other substances. In ancient India, poisons were known (arsenic, aconite
and opium.

Forensic Toxicology is study and practice of the application of toxicology i.e. scientific study of
chemicals such as drugs, toxins and poisons; for the purposes of law and criminal investigation.
It comprises but is not limited to identification and quantification of a particular drug, poison or
substance in human tissue and interpretation of those results.1

The primary aim is to find out whether a person died of poisoning or lethal overdose. Often it
happens; a person is found to have fatal level of drug in their system but is not the cause of
death. Tendency of this happening is because people have different tolerance level for a drug
depending upon their absorption and metabolism.2

As the times changed, obscure poisons were introduced. Some of them were lethal drugs like
fentenyl, insulin, and muscle relaxants. Some household chemicals like antifreeze were used to
commit murder for insurance money. Arsenic was a common agent to commit murder 3. With the
growth of the science of clinical toxicology and forensic toxicology, the development of
centralized laboratory facilities, and the availability of sophisticated analytical tools like gas
chromatography (GC), gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC-MS), high-pressure liquid
chromatography (HPLC), and liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry (LC-MS) it became
easy to detect almost any poison. it is now possible to detect and quantitate up to 70 elements in
1
Di Maio, D.J. & Di Maio, Vincent J. M 2001, Forensic pathology, 2nd edn, CRC Press, Boca Raton
2
Vij, Krishan. Textbook of forensic medicine and toxicology: principles and practice, 5/e. Elsevier India, 2011.
3
Houck, M.M. & Siegel, J.A. 2015, Fundamentals of forensic science, 3rd edn, Academic Press, Amsterdam.
the periodic table. It is also possible to extract toxin from the hair and fingernails and quantify
metals, drugs, or a toxin trapped in these matrices. Today, no matter the poison, a method is
easily being developed to detect it.

However, today, we do consume toxic substances or use cosmetics in day to day use which use
as its ingredients chemicals substances, when if consumed accidently or someone with ill
intentions tampers with it can cause death.

This article aims to discuss the susbstance which a person takes or consumes for pleasantry
experience or to numb their sorrows away. However, these substances can cause much harm than
initially anticipated. Substances like Marijuana and LSD, which although illegal are smuggled.
The result is thousands of youths fell prey to drug abuse problem The data, provided by the
National Crime Records Bureau, showed that the states of Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Tamil
Nadu and Kerala are at the top of the table of drug-related suicides. According to the National
Crime Records Bureau, there were 3,647 such suicide cases in India in 2014, of which
Maharashtra reported the highest, at 1,372. This was followed by Tamil Nadu, with 552 cases
and Kerala, with 475.4

RESEARCH OBJECTIVE

 To study the effect of different substances related with Drugs and Alcohol
 To study the relation of the above and crime.
 To study the Forensic aspect of Drugs, Alcohol and Crime.
 To study the laws related to Drugs and Alcohol.

RESEARCH QUESTION

 Whether or not the chemical aspect of Drugs and Alcohol co-relate with Forensic Aspect
of Death and crime.

TOXICOLOGY

4
Mayank Jain, “Every day, India sees 10 suicides related to drug abuse– and only one of them is from
Punjab” Jul 26, 2016 · 06:30 am
Toxicology can be defined as a science dealing with the adverse effects of chemicals and toxins
on living cells. The word toxin is derived from Greek, which means a poison. The effects on the
cell are described as toxicity. The recognition of toxicology as an independent science is quite
recent and its evolution as a scientific discipline combining the knowledge of biology and
chemistry has been quite rapid. Further impetus to this evolution is due to phenomenal
developments in medicine. 5

METABOLISM OF TOXIC SUSBSTANCE6

The metabolism of toxic materials takes place primarily in the liver. Here the process is carried
out of selecting out the materials which can be passed through the kidneys by virtue of their
water solubility, polar materials and passed through the bile, being non-polar lipid soluble
compounds. From autopsy toxicological point of view, the selecting and change in structure of
the foreign material may also decisively determine the direction of toxicological examination.
These materials are not usually biological in nature, but rather drugs , different organic
chemicals, and even recently the so called xenobiochenical examinations have been given more
attention than the metabolism of drugs, since in practice the effect of these, the effects and
determination of the metabolites, elimination of the substances etc. cause the more problems.
Since most xenobiotic materials are more or less toxic they tend to change the parent compound
into chemical less toxic to the organism during the process of metabolism. A lot of foreign
substances introduced in the organism can be sought by the toxicological examination, among
which the drugs are, industrial chemicals, food preservatives, pesticides but here also belong the
toxins of bacterial metabolism.7

NARCOTIC POISONING8
5
Rao, Kalipatnapu N. Forensic Toxicology: Medico-legal Case Studies. CRC Press, 2012.
6
L.Buris, “Forensic Toxicology”, 1993
7
Id.
8
Shreenya Sharma, Forensic Toxicology and Indian Laws, Available at: https://legaldesire.com/forensic-toxicology-
and-indian-laws/
 For decade the number of drugs used without medical prescription has significantly risen, and
with these the combinations, whether medicines or other substances- for example alcohol – used
to reach a dazed state. The issue is particularly dangerous because, of the various drugs, a
dependency on narcotics is such a psychological and sometimes physical in which the drug and
the organism mutually affect one another, which is characterized a behavioral or other response,
in which the person is always continually or periodically occupied by the compulsion to take the
drugs and the cessation of exposure produces uses an uncomfortable feeling.” (WHO)

Cocaine-

The alkaloid of erithroxilon coca has been known for centuries as having a stimulating, sense-
sharpening effect when chewed.it is used as a local anesthetic and is an excellent desensitizer of
mucous memebranes.. The lethal oral dose is 1.2gm it has a sympatheticomimetic effect, but
interferes with adrenergnerve transmission, norepinephrine and causes such cardiovascular signs
as trachecardia, sudden rise in blood pressure and vasoconstriction. 9 When administered
intravenously it immediately effects the myocardium and many cause sudden death. Cocaine is
sniffed as powder by 39% users, using the base for this since the euphoric effect is greater than
that of cocaine hydrochloride, which can be administered intravenously. In poisoning the lethal
blood level is 0.9-21mg/l. in some cases values of around 1.06mg percentage have been
measured when the drug smugglers have swallowed ballon- containing drugs and the ballon
burst in the digestive tract.10

Anaphylaxia and death from it has been described following cocaine ingestion, this being a
reflection of the purity of the so-called street- preprations. Cocain is commonly taken with other
drugs, especially heroin or other opiates (speed ball). Cocaine significantly potentiates the effect
of heroin. With acute poisoining: tachycardia. Mydriasis, hypertension, hyperreflexia, tremor,

9
“What Is Cocaine?”, https://www.webmd.com/mental-health/addiction/cocaine-use-and-its-effects#1
10
Jitendra N. Bhatt, A Profile of Forensic Science In Juristic Journey, (2003) 8 SCC J-25
convlsions, hallucinations, muscle spasms, doxogenic mental alterations develop. The
intoxicated person in a state of cocaine paranoia may commit crime.
With chronic intoxication euphori, anoerexia, personality changes, and mental deterioration
occur. Habituation is not so pronounces as with morphine and heroin, although the physical
dependency is strong. The withdrawal symptoms are not stormy; the patient complains of feeling
chills.11
In a being the cocaine is metabolized slowly in the liver, thus the intoxication is prolonged. Its
metabolite benzoylecgonine is eliminated in the urine. The autopsy findings are not
characteristic, the organs are engorged with blood, pulmonary edema may develop, the mucous
membranes of the nasal septum may even ulcerate. Gas chromatography, immunological
methods and RIA can be used for the determination of cocaine, the limit of demonstration of
cocaine being 1.0-20 microgramms/ml has been used.12

LSD

This is a compound first synthesized in 1938 in Switzerland which is effective in small doses,
colorless and odorless. In fatal cases the plasma level is as low as 9.5*10 -9 g/kg.its effects include
auditory, visual and olfactory hallucinations and sensations occur in very colorful forms with
geometrical and Kaleidoscopic figures in motion with a rainbow of colors. Perception of
distance, size and space is disturbed.13 A ‘trip’, which is not always pleasant, can occur with the
ingestion of 200- 400 micro-grams. Hyperthermia, pyloerection, tachycardia, hypertension and
hyperglycermia may accompany these “bad trip” many have experienced a sudden returning
“flashback” months after having used LSD. These manifest themselves in three forms
perceptual, vivid, colourful visions and sounds.14

Someatic, parathesia, tachycardia, emotional, panic reaction, depression later in more serious
cases, suicide. The substance given intravenously, binds to plasma proteins in the blood. It is

11
Supra 3
12
Sarah Kerrigan. Sampling, Storage And Stability In Clarke’s Analysis Of Drugs And Poisons, (4th Ed.)
Pharmaceutical Press, London, UK. Eds. A.C. Moffat, M.D. Osselton and B. Widdop (in press). [hereinafter
SARAH] 12SARAH, Supra note 12 at 335.
13
Liechti, Matthias E. "Modern clinical research on LSD." Neuropsychopharmacology 42.11 (2017): 2114-2127.
14
Id.
rapidly metabolized almost completely in the liver chiefly by conjugation with glucuronic acid
and is eliminated in the bile with only remaints being eliminated in the urine.15

Marijuana

The reason of cannabis sativa or cannabis indica is known by among which are Marijuana and
hashish. One of its active agents is tetrahydrocannabinol. Stupefaction upon the inhaliation of the
smoke from burning hemp was known by the ancient greeks, but neither greeks nor the latter
europian cultures made use of it. Its use appeared in far east cultures. Later in the American
colonial period it came into use as a cultivated plant. Due to the extremely lox toxicity the LD50 is
unknown. Death following use is rare. Dried pre-parate of the raw flowering plant is used in
cigarette form and hashis use in the same way produces the same effect of Marijuana with about
one –tenth the amount.16 The effect is variable dependeing not only upon the species of the plant
but upon the population, individual sensitivity and mode of used. When smoked like a cigarette,
a small amount of the active agent is quickly absorbed. When chewed it is absorbed more slowly
and produces and produces a more intense and prolonged effect. Peripherial vasodilation is
characteristics and the conjunctiva and sclera become blood-short as one of the more obvious
signs. Beside this, dizziness, insomnia, apathy, and fatigue develop as does an increase in the
pulse rate then euphoria and colourful drems with dryness of the mouth increase livido, depressin
and at other times, disturbance in alertness and behavior and unusual social behavior can be
noticed with chronic use in complex hypersensitivity erratability, insomnia, apathy, lethargy and
deteroriation of memory occur.17

Morphine

15
Id.
16
Supra Note 4
17
Id.
Opium is the greyish-white, resin-like secretion of the poppy capsule which has belonged to the
group of medications and recreational drugs for thousands of years. Opium itself has been and is
used primarily in the Far East, mostly by inhaling the smoke to achieve stupefaction. Morphine
has the greatest practical significance among its alkaloids (morphine, narcotine, tebaine and
codeine).18 The content of morphine in raw opium is 10 percent. Morphine is a basic alkaloid, a
white crystalline substance with a bitter taste which is easily soluble in either water or alcohol
with a therapeutic blood level of 0.01 mg percent, and a toxic level of 0.1 mg percent. 19 The half
life is four hours, it is well absorbed from the stomach, but its absorption is dependent upon the
ph of the gastric contents. It also crosses the blood brain barrier and the placental barrier. The
toxic dose is 60-100 mg. with 0.2-2,3 mg/l. blood concentration, Ninety percent of the ingested
morphine is eliminated through the kidneys, partly in free and partly in glucuronic acid bound
from and 7-10 percent of the remaining quantity will be found in the stool.20
Acute poisoning can occur with oral or parenteral ingestion. With oral ingestion the sign appear
about twenty minutes later while signs develop quite rapidly with parentral especially
intravenous dosing. With acute ingestion due to the deprecive effect on the central nervous
system, concentration diminishes while euphoria and tolerance to pain grow. The intoxicated
person feels liberated. Perception of space and time decreases by followed by feeling dryness in
the mouth, narrow pupils, cyanosis, feeble and superficial breathing, permulnory edema,
cardivasculor depression, and comma. Before death the pupils dilate, the cause of death is
respiratory insufficiency.21

The autopsy findings in acute intoxication are not characteristics along with the sign of acute
congrggession, the viscera are ingorged with blood, cyanotic, the blood is fluid, and the pupils
are occasionaly narrowed to pin point size.22

18
Martin, W__R, et al. "The effects of morphine-and nalorphine-like drugs in the nondependent and morphine-
dependent chronic spinal dog." Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics 197.3 (1976): 517-532.
19
Id.
20
Levine B., Principles of Forensic Toxicology, American Association For Clinical Chemistry, Washington, (2006)
[hereinafter LEVINE]; The Bullention Of International Association Of Forensic Toxicologist, TIAFT-Bulletin vol.
XXIX (1), (1999), Available at http://www.tiaft.org/_test12/tiaft_bulletin [hereinafter TIAFT]
21
Yadav M, Tiwari A. Forensic toxicology and its relevance with criminal justice delivery system in India. Forensic
Res Criminol Int J. 2017;4(4):122‒128. DOI: 10.15406/frcij.2017.04.00121
22
Id.
Alcohol Intoxication

The alcohols are hydroxil derivatives of longer or shorter change aliphatic carbohydrates. There
toxicity increases with the length of the carbon chain. Witht the exception of the methanol,
which is a great deal more toxic than ethanol. The divalent alcohols or glycols with their sweet
taste are conspicuous in this group therewide- spread use account for their treatment appearance
in poisoning cases. Their clinical signs their metabolisationby the same enzymes and the
charateristics of the therapy justify the classification of these members into one group.23

Ethelyn Glycol

Ethelyn glycol is a colourless, odourless, sweet liquid which mixes well with water and alcohol.
Its boiling point is 197. 5 centrigrate. It is widely used in industry, labarotries, automobile
cooling break fluid and these later few account for the bulk of the cases of poisoning (due to its
sweetening property it played a prominent role in the production of fake Ausrtian wines which
caused numerous poisoning when ethelyn glycol was used to improve the wines, but in 1987 in
pecs (Hungary) Ethelyn glycol also got into the water pipe system and also caused mass
intoxication).24

The lethal dose of ehtelyn glycol is 100g but some have survived the ingestion of 240 ml the
lethal blood label is 200 mg percent. The signs of imtoxication appear a short time after the
ingestion- 1-1 hours the victim appears drunk, but there is no odour of alcohol on the breath.
There is nausea, vomiting, abdominal pains, diarrhea, a burning feeling in the mouth and throat,
irritability, babbling, ataxia, increases impulse rate, depression and dyspnoe. Deep depression,
comma, increases pulse and breathing rate convulslation serious acidosis, , capillary damage and
hematuria develop 3-12 hours later. 25

23
Supra Note 6
24
Lim, Joevy, Anna Mearns, and Chip Gresham. "Ethylene glycol poisoning: mind the gap." The New Zealand
Medical Journal (Online) 132.1495 (2019): 74-78.
25
Hodgson, E., Introduction To Toxicology, In A Textbook Of Modern Toxicology 3 (Third Edition, 2004), John
Wiley & Sons, Inc., Hoboken, NJ, USA
The autopsy findings include sub-plural and haemorraige, bleeding in the tissue of the lungs,
heart, kidneys and brain, edma of the brain damage to the pyramidal cells, the appearance of the
calcium oxcilate crystals, then pulmonary edema and bronchopneumonia.26

Ethyl Alcohol

It has been used not only as a flavoring substance, but as an important medication before the
damaging effects were known. In the textbook of pharmacology written 35 years ago we can find
such descriptions of alcohol by the author of the excellent roborant effect upon dosing with
alcohol and carbohydrate group.27 Ethyl alcohol is a colorless liquid with a characteristic odor, in
greater concentrations causes a burning sensation in the mouth and pharynx, and completely
dissolves in water.28
The clinical signs of acute alcohol intoxication can be characteristic. The autopsy findings in
lethal poisoning, however, are weak. The organs smell of alcohol, the esophagus and gastric
mucosa show pin-point hemorrhages.29

DEATH IN ACUTE ALCOHOL POISONING

Death due to toxic effects of acute over-ingestion of ethanol is essentially due to respiratory and
central nervous system depression, and usually involves blood ethanol levels of 400–500 mg%
or high. However, one must be reminded here that a blood ethanol concentration of around 400
mg%, and a novice, nontolerant individual may die from a blood ethanol concentration as low as
200–300 mg% or lower,. Further, if ethanol is combined with an opiate or other type of
respiratory depressant, death can occur even in the presence of lower ethanol concentration. Still
further, ethanol levels recorded in the blood may not necessarily be the highest level that the
individual had achieved because he/she might have metabolised the agent to some degree during

26
Deepak Ratan & Mohd. Hasan Zaidi, Toxicology Division, in Forensic Science In India And The World, P. 578,
(2008)
27
Celik, Safa, et al. "Fatal ethyl and methyl alcohol-related poisoning in Ankara: A retrospective analysis of 10,720
cases between 2001 and 2011." Journal of forensic and legal medicine 20.3 (2013): 151-154.
28
Id.
29
Id.
his/her comatose state, before dying. Alcohol often indirectly lead to death For example,
Trauma, death by drowning, Death from burns or carbon monoxide poisoning, Death may occur
due to consumption of some other additive or synergistic drug along with alcohol.30

LEGAL ASPECT

There are four basic steps for the identification of any drug in the human body31-

Sampling- While performing autopsy a minimum quantity of blood, urine, bile, hair and vitreous
are collected as sample. If human remains are in highly decomposed state and there are no viable
tissues or organs or blood available to test for drugs, the toxicological analysis can be performed
through maggots- a subfield of toxicology known as Entomotoxicology. 

Extraction- Techniques such as GC-MS, HPLC, TLC, Immunoassay or UV Spectrophotometry

are used for separation of drug from the biological sample.

Sreening- Screening involves the preliminary testing of drugs in body fluids. Commonly, there
are four general screens tests. 

 First screen for Lower alcohols such as acetone, isopropyl alcohol, ethyl alcohol, n-
propyl alcohol and methyl alcohol.
 Second screen for acidic and neutral screen such as barbiturates, salicylates, ethclorvynol
and carbarnates.
 Third screen is the basic screen for detection of tranquilizers, synthetic narcotics, local
anaesthetics, antihistamines, antidepressants, and alkaloids.
 Fourth screen is the narcotics careen for opiates, cocaine, methadone and other highly
psychotropic substances.

30
27
31
Supra note 1 at 32
Confirmation- Once the preliminary tests detect presence of a drug, it has to be confirmed. The
confirmatory method should be different and more sensitive than the preliminary testing method.

Classification of drug/ poisons and their legal limit is unlikely to be uniform all over the globe as
it changes from country to country. In India, based on mode of action poisons can be classified
into six groups:32

 Corrosives- Strong acids such as Sulphuric acid HCl etc.

 Irritants- Inorganic, organic and mechanical substances such as phosphorus, castor oil, glass
etc.
 Neurotics-  opium and other alkaloids, kerosene, malathion, insecticides etc
 Cardiac- digitalis, oleander etc
 Asphyxiants- Carbon monoxide, dioxide etc,
 Miscellaneous- antihistamine, tranquilisers etc.

ETHANOL AND CRIME

Brawls, assaults (sexual and nonsexual), homicides and suicides are commonly associated with
intoxication. Section 85 (IPC) gives the same immunity to a person intoxicated involuntarily
as Section 84 (IPC) gives to a person of unsound mind, provided the person was intoxicated to
such an extent as to be incapable of knowing the nature and consequences of the act. Section 86
(IPC), dealing with voluntary drunkenness, imputes the same knowledge to such a man as he
would have had, had he not been intoxicated. No one can be permitted to wear the cloak of
immunity by getting drunk, and so voluntary drunkenness is never an answer to criminal
charge.33

ETHANOL AND VEHICULAR ACCIDENTS

32
Krishnamurthy, R. (2011) Forensic Science in Criminal Investigation, SSB, Delhi, India
33
Supra Note 6
It is well-known that consumption of ethanol and consequent intoxication has adverse effects on
the driver of a vehicle in the form of visual blurring, reduction in visual acuity (stronger
illumination is often required to distinguish objects, and dimly lit objects may not be
distinguished at all), decreased awareness and reaction to stimuli (differences in intensity of
various stimuli are less easily distinguished, especially in case of light and touch), motor
incoordination, impairment of judgement and increased reaction time. 34 This has given rise to the
adage ‘Drinking and driving don’t mix’. Driving a vehicle on a public thoroughfare under the
influence of alcohol (or any other intoxicating drug) is an offence in almost every country of the
world. In India, it is an offence punishable under Section 185 of the Motor Vehicle Act.35

INDIAN LAWS

The reports of the expert in relation to the results of forensic toxicology, became admissible as
the Indian Evidence Act permits evidence of the opinion of persons (called ‘experts’ under the
Act itself) specially skilled upon a point of foreign law, science, art, or as to identity of
handwriting or finger impressions, the opinions upon that point. 36 Expert evidence is appreciated
based on several factors such as the skill of the expert37 and the exactness of the science.38
Accidental poisoning may occur due to overdose (particularly due to automatism or due to mixed
therapy with other additive or synergistic drug). The so-called barbiturate automatism may
occur when the patient after taking dose of barbiturate confuses and thinks he has not taken the
drug. This dose can be ingested in any way here are some laws for its precaution.39

Indian Penal Code

Section 272: Adulteration of food or drink intended for sale

34
Id.
35
Id.
36
Section 45, Indian Evidence Act, 1872
37
State v. S.J. Choudhary, AIR 1990 SC 1050 9, quoting the 69th Report of the Law Commission, 17.31.
38
Pratap Misra v. State of Orissa, AIR 1977 SC 1307, 5.
39
Id.
Since, anyone can be poisoned with an adulteration of food, intentionally or intentionally, which
may bring the manufacturer in question. As, to gain more pecuniary benefits, chemicals are used
in the edible materials for various purposes which include artificial taste, early ripening etc. Most
of are even hazardous in nature.
Therefore, Whoever adulterates any article of food or drink, so as to make such article noxious
as food or drink, intending to sell such article as food or drink, or knowing it to be likely that the
same will be sold as food or drink, shall be punished and penalized according to the nature of
crime.

Section 274: Adulteration of drugs

Whoever adulterates any drug or medical preparation in such a manner as to lessen the efficacy
or change the operation of such drug or to make it noxious, intending that it shall be sold or used
for, or knowing it to be likely that it will be sold or used for, any medical purpose are punished
and penalized accordingly.

The Poison Act, 1919

The Act was amended in 1958 and repealed in 1960. It dealt with the import of poisonous
substances in India, issue of license for possession of certain specified poisons, and restrictions
in the sale of such substances (mostly chemicals) as poisons, over which control is to be
exercised.

Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940

The Act deals with the import, manufacture, distribution, and sale of all kinds of drugs like
Allopathic, Ayurveda, Unani, Siddha, etc., other than cosmetics. As per the Act, every patented
or proprietary medicinal preparation should display on the label of the container, either the exact
formula or a list of the ingredients. The Act was amended in 1964, and very recently in 2008.
Drugs and Cosmetics (Amendment) Act, 2008 has enhanced the scale of punishment for various
offences, including sale of spurious drugs, adulteration of drugs and cosmetics, toxic
contamination, etc.
The Drugs and Cosmetics Rules, 1945

This act deals largely with the standard and quality of drugs, apart from exercising control over
the manufacture, sale, and distribution, of drugs and cosmetics. The Act was amended in 1988,
and is now referred as Drugs and Cosmetics Rules (Eighth Amendment), 1988.

As Per the Act, categories of drugs used in therapeutics have been comprised: allopathic,
homeopathic, ayurvedic, unani, and siddha according to which they are to be categorized and
packed properly. Under this Act, to expedite the analysis or testing of drug samples to assess
their quality, the Central Drugs Testing Laboratory (CDTL) was established in 1962.

The Pharmacy Act, 1948

The goal of this statute is to permit only enlisted drug pharmacists to compound, prepare, blend,
or apport any medication on the prescription of a Registered Medical Practitioner. Under this
Act, the Pharmacy Council of India, New Delhi has been established, under the Ministry of
Health and Family Welfare, which regulates the study of drug stores all through the nation.
Singular states have their own State Pharmacy Councils for the registration of Pharmacists.

Narcotic Drugs as enlisted in the Act

Narcotics Drugs and Psychotropic Substance Act, 1985 The Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic
Substances (NDPS) Act was enacted in India and subsequently amended in 1988, to implement
the provisions of the Convention on Psychotropic Substances (1971), and the Convention
Against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (1988), both held in
Vienna. This Act renders three previous Acts, which are now obsolete—

1. The Opium Act, 1857

2. The Opium Act, 1878
 3. The Dangerous Drugs Act, 1930

As per the NDPS, Act, 1985, a narcotic drug could be an Opiate, which is a true narcotic; or
Cannabis, which a non-narcotic; or even Cocaine which is the very antithesis of a narcotic, since
it act as a stimulant. The term ―Psychotropic Substance is with reference to mind-altering drugs
such as LSD, Phencyclidine, Amphetamines, Barbiturates, Methaqualone, Benzodiazepines,
Mescaline, Psilocybin, and Designer Drugs (MDMA, DMT, etc.). The Act completely prohibits
the cultivation of Coca, Poppy, and Cannabis plants, and the manufacture, sale, purchase, use, or
transport of any narcotic drug or psychotropic substance except for medical or scientific
purposes.

It also punishes persons directly involved in trafficking narcotic drugs and psychotropic
substances, any person who finances trafficking, or harbours a person involved in trafficking, or
abets, or is a party to a criminal conspiracy, including a criminal conspiracy to commit an
offence outside India is also liable to the same scale of punishments.

CONCLUSION

The Article discusses different types of alcohol and drugs which one consume daily through one
way or the other. This can cause severe damage to one’s wellbeing and thinking ability. Both of
these can cause death either incidentally or imparing one’s thought process so that the person
loses control and accidentally may cause his/her own death.
In 2012, there were more than 4,000 cases, in the subsequent year, it shot up to 4,500. More
than 25,000 people committed suicides due to drug abuse in the 10-year period between 2004
and 2013, as per the National Crime Records Bureau40. And in case of alcoholism, In 2017, the
latest year for which data is available, 4,776 people or 13 people evry day i.e. 14,071 died in
road accidents due to driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs.41

40
Supra note 2
41
Id.
BIBLIOGRAPHY

 Rao, Kalipatnapu N. Forensic Toxicology: Medico-legal Case Studies. CRC Press, 2012.
 L.Buris, “Forensic Toxicology”, 1993
 Liechti, Matthias E. "Modern clinical research on
LSD." Neuropsychopharmacology 42.11 (2017): 2114-2127.
 Lim, Joevy, Anna Mearns, and Chip Gresham. "Ethylene glycol poisoning: mind the
gap." The New Zealand Medical Journal (Online) 132.1495 (2019): 74-78.
 Celik, Safa, et al. "Fatal ethyl and methyl alcohol-related poisoning in Ankara: A
retrospective analysis of 10,720 cases between 2001 and 2011." Journal of forensic and
legal medicine 20.3 (2013): 151-154.