Drug abuse has become so rife in South Africa's schools that principals are forced to test pupils daily. In some schools, breathalyers are used to test if pupils have been drinking in class or during special school events.Anti-drug activists and organisations called on to conduct tests say drug testing at both private and public schools takes place more frequently, with more pupils testing positive.Basic Education Department spokesman Elijah Mahlangu did not respond to questions on the issue.In Chatsworth, south of Durban, pupils from 20 to 30 schools test positive for dagga each week. The area has 80 schools.Sam Pillay, Chatsworth Anti-drug Forum director and KwaZulu-Natal Anti-Substance Abuse Forum deputy chairman, said parents of pupils suspected of abusing drugs were contacted and instructed to take them to an anti-drug centre for testing."We see this every day. If the pupil tests positive, they have a choice of either facing a disciplinary tribunal or attending our early intervention programme."He says there is a high number of girls testing positive for dagga.Pillay said though there were "a few" primary school pupils who had tested positive for dagga, high school pupils aged between 13 and 16 were the worst offenders."Dagga is a gateway drug, that is why we have this early intervention programme."Pillay said drug dealers targeted all schools.He said the type of drugs sold to pupils depended on the socioeconomic conditions of the area."In private and former Model C schools, dealers sell expensive drugs like cocaine, as well as steroids. In township schools, we find a large number of runners selling dagga."Marc Hardwick of The Guardian, which runs drug prevention programmes in 200 schools across South Africa, said drug dealers saw the teenage market as an attractive revenue stream."Teenagers have more pocket money to spend than ever before and dealers want to tap into that money. Dealers are recruiting children within schools to assist with the distribution of these drugs."Quinton van Kerken, Anti-Drug Alliance SA chief executive, which conducts frequent drug tests and searches at schools in Gauteng and Western Cape, said about 15% of children tested positive for drugs.He said despite pupils undergoing intervention programmes there were still those who tested positive at least three times in a row."Drugs in schools are a reality. Parents should not sit back and think it can never happen in their child's school or that their child will never use a drug."..