An image is doing the rounds on social media platforms claiming that it shows a new drug known as 'strawberry quick' is being circulated in schools across the country.
What have users said?: Those sharing the photo have uploaded it with a caption that said, "Parents shld know about this drug.This is a new drug known as 'strawberry quick'. Therez a very scary thing going on in the schs right now that we all need to be aware of. Therez a type of crystal meth going around that looks like strawberry (sic)."
What led us to the truth?: On conducting a reverse image search on the viral image, we found the same visual published in a report by The Sun.
It said that four school-going girls were taken to a hospital after they had consumed "teddy bear ecstasy pills" in Manchester, the United Kingdom.
As per the police, the girls had swallowed the pink pills near the Civic Centre in Wythenshawe.
The report further mentioned that the minors had been discharged and were recovering at home.
Arunachal Pradesh Police clarifies: Team WebQoof found several recent news reports that talked about Arunachal Pradesh Police dismissing the rumours about strawberry-falvoured "meth candy" being circulated among school-going children.
Capital SP Rohit Rajbir Singh reportedly termed it as an old internet hoax and said that it had first surfaced in the United States in 2007.
On checking for older relevant reports, we found one published by CBS News in May 2007 stating that a latest meth cut identified as "Strawberry Quick" was found in Arkansas, the United States.
It should be noted that Snopes, a fact-checking organisation, had debunked the claims about the same drug being sold to school-going children.
Has there been any such cases in India?: A report published in Times of India in 2010 mentioned that the drug had sent off alarm bells in schools in Maharashtra's Mumbai.
At that time, the Deputy Police Commissioner in-charge of the anti-narcotics cell Sunil Paraskar had reportedly said that he would look into the matter and take action.
Conclusion: It is clear that the claim is misleading as there is no recent evidence to prove that such a drug is being circulated.
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