CHENNAI: A 17-year-old youth from Pulianthope who was allegedly addicted to injecting painkillers was found dead on the sidewalks in Esplanade on Friday.

While his family members alleged drug overdose to be the reason behind the death, City police are awaiting post mortem results to ascertain the cause of the death.

The dead teenager was identified as Zakir (17), the youngest among three children. His father, Dastagir is an auto driver and his mother, Mumtaaz is a housewife, police said.

Zakir has been working as a helper with an electrician for the last six months. On Friday evening, he left home along with his friend, Kashif to George Town to meet their friend Abinesh, who had recently come out on bail.

Abinesh lives on the platform, police said. In the evening, Zakir fell unconscious after which he was rushed to the Government Stanley hospital for treatment where he was declared as brought dead. Esplanade Police moved his body for post mortem and have begun investigations.

While preliminary investigations with the family showed that he was addicted to painkiller injections, police are investigating whether his death was because of an overdose.

"Only after the visceral test can we confirm the cause of death, " said a police officer.

Speaking to media persons, the boy's parents said that their neighborhood in Pulianthope is fraught with the painkiller injection menace.