2025, Vol. 7, Issue 10, Part A

Author(s): Atul Gautam

Abstract: Punjab’s alcohol and substance-use crisis is frequently discussed in public and political spheres.Yet, mass media portrayals often emphasise law-and-order, moral panic, and sensational narratives rather than structural drivers, mental health impacts, and inequities in service access. This paper synthesizes epidemiological data, national surveys, peer-reviewed studies, and media content to: (a) statistically establish the scope of alcohol and substance abuse in Punjab, including onset, morbidity, and mortality patterns; (b) analyze how gender, caste, class, and urban-rural divisions intersect with substance-related harms; (c) examine political agendas and news/social media frames around the “Punjab drug crisis”; and (d) analyze portrayals of drug and alcohol use in Indian cinema, Punjabi music, and popular culture. Using an intersectional framework and critical discourse analysis, the study argues that Punjab’s crisis is as much a discursive inequity—reproduced through media and cultural narratives—as it is a public health inequity, and that media reform and equity-oriented policies are essential to a humane, effective response.

DOI: 10.33545/27068919.2025.v7.i10a.1708

Pages: 63-70 | Views: 331 | Downloads: 106

Download Full Article: Click Here