IN November 2012, an explosion took place in a flat in Karachi’s ‘posh’ Defence area. In the newsroom I was working in at the time, we reacted in the standard manner: the police were called for quotes and (once they ruled out gas leaks or short circuits as the cause) a reporter was dispatched to the scene.

While we waited for him to return and file the story, we speculated as to what had happened. Given the state of affairs at the time, we arrived at the conclusion that this was likely a bomb-making factory, where an accidental explosion had taken place. Given that there were no casualties, the only real peg we were left with was the location. Had terrorists set up shop on Khayaban-i-Bukhari? What kind of headline would this make? Should this go on the national or city pages?

When the reporter finally returned, he had more questions than answers. This didn’t look like any bomb-making factory he or the police had ever seen. There were no wires, detonators, fertiliser, or plastic explosives. Instead they found glass beakers, plastic tubing, Bunsen burners, and rubber gloves; items not out of place in a standard chemistry lab. Along with these, were chemicals such as bleach and calcium carbonate; items one could easily purchase at just about any store.

The flat was not being used to make explosives; it was a laboratory for the manufacture of crystal methamphetamine, and according to Pakistan Customs’ spokesperson Qamar Thello, this was the first such lab to have ever been discovered in Pakistan. Crystal meth (or ‘meth’ as it is called on the street) may have been new to Pakistan, but has in fact been around for a while. Methamphetamine was first developed in Germany in 1887, and its more potent crystal form was synthesised in Japan in 1919. In the 1990s, Mexican drug cartels began manufacturing the drug on an industrial scale — and today the UN estimates that there are over 25 million meth users across the world.

Meth is popular because it is cheap and easy to conceal.

In any case, the lab story was filed and forgotten. But then, just last week, a customs official held a standard press conference detailing the latest seizures of drugs being smuggled out of the country. The haul included one kilo of crystal meth secreted in two separate suitcases, destined for the Gulf.

Meth hasn’t gone away in the intervening four years. If anything, its production has expanded to the point that it is now being smuggled out of Pakistan. That isn’t to say that there isn’t a thriving and growing local market, quite the contrary.

A detailed story ‘Meth the ‘new heroin’ in KP’, highlights the increasing use of this drug in KP, the devastating impact it has on its users, and the confusion of the police when it comes to tackling this new scourge. The story claims that much of the meth available in Pakistan is sourced from the Khyber Agency — and that there are over 400 meth dealers in Peshawar alone. However, meth is commonly available in just about every Pakistani city, and its use is increasing sharply. There are reports of large labs operating in Balochistan, as well as of smaller operations run by university students (with chemical engineering backgrounds) in Karachi.

And there lies one of the reasons why meth is so dangerous and difficult to curb: unlike cocaine and heroin, which require precursor plants only grown in specific locations, meth can be made at home. All you need are household chemicals, simple lab equipment … and ephedrine. Does that last ingredient ring a bell? Meth is popular because it is relatively cheap (cocaine sells for Rs10,000 to Rs12,000 per gram, while meth can be obtained for Rs1,500 to Rs3,000), is easy to conceal, and is incredibly potent.

Meth users typically feel an initial burst of manic energy and confidence, verging on aggression, upon ingesting the drug. The need to sleep or eat vanishes, and one can push one’s body to otherwise impossible limits. In some cases, users don’t sleep for days on end. The crash is even more intense, with constant cravings for the drug leading to anxiety, paranoia, and in some cases, self-harm and hallucinations. It’s also almost impossible to quit; the rehabilitation rate for meth users is less than 12pc, meaning you’d have an easier time quitting a heroin habit.

Pakistan is familiar with the effects of drug epidemics; heroin destroyed countless lives, and set up a whole class of ‘narco barons’ who used their wealth to influence politics and build empires. But the meth epidemic may prove even more dangerous — heroin addicts may resort to petty theft, but are rarely violent, in sharp contrast to meth addicts. Moreover, the ease of manufacture means that we will soon be faced with a new class of narco merchants, flush with cash made by profiting from pain.

The writer is a journalist.

Twitter: @zarrarkhuhro

Published in Dawn, April 18th, 2016