As Makwanpur becomes a transit point for drug trafficking, drug rings are increasingly using children as decoys because juveniles cannot be arrested. Instead, police hand over children to parents and guardians after giving them a warning. Since 2009 only six cases have been filed in the juvenile bench for drug trafficking and this year there has been only a single case.
Last month, the District Police Office in Makwanpur caught nine children from Hetauda bus park, Ram mandir chok, Ratomate, Karra, and Churiyamai area. Some of those who were detained were younger than 10. According to the public defender of the district court of Makwanpur Koshaleswor Gyawali, traffickers give children Rs 500 to 1,500 for carrying drugs.
Since children cannot arrested or locked up and the only option is to rehabilitate them at home, cases like these are on the rise says Gyawali. According to locals, marijuana and opium produced in Makwanpur are trafficked to India and other drugs and syringes are trafficked to various cities in the country through this southern hub.