405
Ganja and bhang are used in the treatment of
cattle disease.
41. The moderate use of bhang may be bene-
ficial in its effects.
42. The moderate use of charas and ganja will
not do much harm.
43. Yes.
45. No; moderate use will not produce bad
effects.
47. No.
49. It is not used by prostitutes. If moderate-
ly used, it does not produce impotence. If taken
excessively, very injurious results will follow, and
may produce noxious effects, physical, mental, and
moral.
51. Yes; they use ganja. Its moderate use
has no connection with any crime.
53. Yes, I know of no such case.
55. Seldom. Complete stupefaction can only
be induced when the drug is mixed with some
other thing.
181. Evidence of BABU KRISHNA CHANDRA RAI, Baidya, Government Pensioner
and Zamindar, District Dacca.
1. I was in the Sub-Executive Service for about
27 years and was in charge of the Abkari Depart-
ment of Pirojpur Sub-division for about 2 years,
of the Mymensingh District for more than a year,
and of the Dacca District for about 5 years.
Pirojpur is in Backergunge District.
I had,
when in charge of the Abkari Department, oppor-
tunity of obtaining information regarding hemp
drugs.
2. The definitions given by Dr. Prain are cor-
rect and may be accepted in the districts named
by me, viz., Dacca,Mymensingh, and Backergunge,
and in others where I have been in the course of
my service; the names locally known are also the
same, viz., flat, round, and chur ganja.
3. Hemp plant (wild) male generally and
mostly, and female in extremely rare cases grow
spontaneously in Dacca and Mymensingh Districts.
I do not recollect seeing the plant in Backergunge.
In the Dacca District it is abundant specially in
the sub-division of Manikgunge where my home
is. I can reasonably venture to say that it is
also abundant in other parts of Dacca and in some
parts of Mymensingh, where the land is not very
low.
4. It is called bhang or siddhi and it refers
exactly to the same plant.
5. I have invariably seen wild hemp grows on
lands which are used as homestead land. No
special conditions of climate, soil, or rainfall are
necessary.
6. Its growth is dense ordinarily.
7. There is no cultivation of the hemp plant in
the districts of which I have experience, viz.,
Dacca, Mymensingh, and Backergunge. I know
also that there is no such cultivation in Tippera,
Noakhali, and Faridpur. In rare cases one or
two female plants spontaneously grow in the
premises of the ganja-smokers, but the smokers
take care to conceal the fact from the authorities
for fear of punishment.
8. No answer necessary.
9. I can give no information on this point.
10. Regular cultivators of hemp plant are only
to be found in Rajshahi, of which district I have
no experience and can give no information.
11. I have not seen cultivation. I said I have
never been in Rajshahi. My evidence will be
hearsay. I am told that seeds are raised some-
times from the female wild hemp plant.
12. I have no reason to suppose that the
wild hemp is anywhere specially cultivated for
producing ganja.
13. The cultivation is restricted to only Raj-
shahi District in Lower Bengal. Can give no
information required by this question, as to why
it is restricted to only one district and not com-
mon to all the districts. I think the cultivation
is not impossible, but never tried in any other
districts.
14. My answer refers to the districts of Dacca,
Mymensingh, and Backergunge. In none of these
any preparation is made of the hemp plant for
ganja, charas, and bhang, but leaves of the wild
hemp are dried and preserved in small quantity
by some persons for using medicinally.
15. There is no preparation of any kind in the
districts mentioned above. Those who take wild
bhang daily are mostly up-country men, who
come to East Bengal for service. Hindus of this
part of the country who are addicted to bhang
drinking pound the dried leaves, mix sometimes
with milk and sugar, but often with water, black
pepper and dhoma (a sort of spice) powder and
then drink. This preparation is made imme-
diately before drinking.
16. I have said above what I know of the wild
hemp plant from which ganja is in rare cases pre-
pared by the smokers on whose premises one or
two female plants grow spontaneously. The pre-
paration is made secretly and by concealing the
fact from the authorities. Charas is never pre-
pared in the districts I named.
18. All three drugs become deteriorated and
lose effect when kept for a long time, hence the
surplus ganja of the Government store (gola) is
destroyed annually. They never or seldom re-
main useful after two years, and after a year, I
am told, the effect or intoxicating power becomes
much less and therefore consumers do not use
them.
I am not aware of any special measures which
can be taken to prevent deterioration.
19. Ganja and charas are used only for smoking.
I am aware of no other purpose for which they are
used.
20. Ganja-smokers are to be found amongst all
classes of the people in these districts; the pro-
portion, I suppose, may not exceed on an average
7 per cent. or even less than that; comparatively
a very small number of men can only be traced
amongst the urban population who are addicted
to the use of charas. Ganja smokers are to be
found both in towns as well as in villages. Men
who use charas can hardly be found in villages.
21. I am of opinion that people seldom look to
the difference in kinds or effect; they look chiefly
to the cheapness of the price, and hence flat ganja