152
from the treasury direct to retail vendors, as
opium is now sold, it would be easy for Govern
-
ment to realise Rs. 2 per ¼-seer bag, or Its. 8 per
seer. It would be requisite, however, to ensure
careful and honest selection of only the first class
ganja for these ¼-seer bags at the Government
stores. At present, Tahsildars are subjected to
great waste of time in cleaning the ganja issued
by sackfuls from the Khandwa store. It would
pay Government well to cause effective and honest
selection there. It would be easy to provide damp
and rat-proof store places at every treasury. The
¼-seer bags should be sealed at the central store
when filled.
68. Ganja is not a drug for which people col
-
lect in shops or houses to smoke together. The
habitual ganja smokers must have their whiff
three or four times a day, and they carry it about
with them. It never has been the custom for
consumers of ganja to collect in the shops to
smoke it together on the premises. The prohibi
-
tion of smoking ganja in shop premises has, there
-
fore, had no particular effect.
69. There are no complaints against the loca
-
tion of ganja shops. People have no objection to
location of a ganja shop in a bazar. On the con
-
trary, it is a convenience. The shop is no nui
-
sance, for objectionable people do not assemble at
or hang about the ganja shop. Ganja smoking
is so common, that there is no prejudice against
the shop.
79. Evidence* of HUSEN KHAN,† Pathan, Abkari Contractor, Seoni-Chapara.
I. I have been retail vendor of ganja for some
17 years, and at present hold the lease of five
ganja shops in this district. I was wholesale
vendor for four or five years. I take the leases
in name of my agent, Karim Baksh, and am re
-
corded as his surety.
2. The definition of ganja is correct. The dry
leaves of all hemp are called bhang, but the leaves
of the Nimar plant do not make good bhang.
When I was wholesale vendor, before Govern-
ment took to burning the bhang of the Nimar
plant as refuse, 1 used to sell it cheap, at the rate
of two or three seers per rupee, in contrast with
picked ganja at about half the quantity per rupee.
This was twelve or fourteen years ago, before the
present system, and I got my stock then from
Katol (Nagpur district), not from Nimar.
3. I know of no district where the hemp plant
grows spontaneously. It occasionally grows from
seed that people throw away out of purchased
ganja.
7. The ganja we sell is procured from Khandwa,
where ganja is grown under Government rules
and restrictions,— vide Abkari Manual, Chapter V.
It is only grown for ganja.
14. In the Central Provinces, ganja is only
grown in the Nimar district, and only for the
produce called ganja.
15. Eight or ten poor people join together to
buy ¼-seer of bhang. They soak this for about an
hour in water, and throw that water away. Then
they grind up the moist leaves in about a chittack
of black pepper, and mix the paste in about four
seers of water, let it stand a little, and then strain
and drink the liquid, adding about half a seer of
sugar.
Seth Girdhari Lal, Witness No. 77, has describ
-
ed a fancy brew for rich people. The method I
have described is the usual one among the poorer
classes. The bhang, which I refer to above, that
the poor use, is the leaves of the Nimar ganja.
We sell it at the same price as ganja (flower).
The demand for this preparation is in the season
of Holi, and in the hot weather.
The general manner of use is for smoking.
For this only the kali (or flower) is used, and all
seed picked out and thrown away. A man takes
sufficient of this ganja for a chillum (native pipe)
in one hand and rubs it with his hand, and, if
particular, washes it out once or twice with a drop
or two of water, and then makes a ball of it. He
mixes this with tobacco, in the proportion of about
three parts ganja to one part of tobacco. Such a
pipe is passed on from man to man for a draw.
One such pipe is sufficient to stimulate four
m e n .
16. Bhang is only prepared for a drink, and
people have to prepare it in their houses; they
cannot buy it ready prepared to drink. A party
may assemble under a tree and prepare it there.
17. Sunars, Banias and Kayeths are the castes
which most generally drink the decoction of
bhang; it is their custom in the hot weather.
Gossains and Musalmans occasionally drink bhang
decoction.
The Gond labouring-class are the most habitual
smokers of ganja. Among Gonds, I include Par
-
dhans, for they are just as habitual smokers of
ganja as the Gonds proper. All other castes
smoke ganja occasionally ; about 10 per cent. of
the male population are habitual smokers of
ganja.
18. Ganja is what I know about. It deterior
-
ates from keeping. It keeps quite good for a
year, if no water be allowed to fall on it. If kept
in a dry place, raised from the floor, it will keep
good for two or three years. It loses its effect
after four or five years. Damp is fatal to ganja.
19. Ganja (flowers) are only smoked. Some
of the hardened consumers of opium mix ganja in
their opium pill, and hardened smokers of madak
mix ganja in their pipe, all to make the intox--
icating effect stronger. But this is exceptional,
by about 5 per cent. of the opium and madak
smokers.
20. In this town (Seoni) of about 12,000 in
-
habitants, there are about 500 who smoke ganja
daily. Women, as a rule, do not touch ganja.
Of the 500 consumers, about 100 are youths of
12 years and upwards, about 100 old men, and
about 300 men in their prime.
21. I know no ganja now, except the one kind
supplied from the Government store at Khandwa.
22. Charas is unknown in Seoni.
23. Bhang is never smoked in this district.
24. There are no habitual smokers of bhang in
the Seoni district. There is none available for
purchase. I know nothing of any import of
foreign bhang. People separate the leaves from
the flower of the ganja supplied for sale from the
Nimar store, and make a cooling drink from this
* T r a n s l a t i o n .
† Invited to attend at a sitting of the Commission for oral examination, but failed to appear.