The next substance use survey will feature a larger sample.

• The Union government is planning a nationwide survey to determine the extent and pattern of substance use.

• The survey will expand on the ‘National Survey on Extent and Pattern of Substance Use in India 2017-18’, a first-of-its-kind study on estimating illicit drug use.

• The Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment is finalizing the formalities for the survey.

• The new survey is expected to have a larger sample size and gather patterns of substance use at the district-level.

• The 2017-18 survey had two components: a household survey and a respondent-driven survey (RDS).

• The RDS method was used to account for possible under-reporting of illicit drug use.

• The 2017-18 survey found alcohol as the most used substance, with over 15 crore people estimated to be using it.

• Experts suggest granular data on which pharmaceuticals are being used and abused.