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North Korean construction workers are being fed crystal meth in order to make them work faster and hit government targets.

Building workers are given the drug in order to ensure that infrastructure projects in the capital Pyongyang are completed on time.

US government-funded broadcaster Radio Free Asia reported that hundreds of thousands of workers were recruited to finish showcase housing projects in the city.

Managers overseeing the works are now exerting huge pressure on workers to finish them before harsh winter weather hits, and have used crystal meth to make staff worker at greater speeds.

Some staff have reportedly daubed graffiti on sites in a daring show of defiance against their bosses and dictator Kim Jong Un's regime.

Slogans sprayed onto walls include “Pyongyang speed is drug speed", and references to "drug troops".