318
which the hemp plant grows spontaneously or
abundantly in Berar.
7. In the following villages of Mulkapur taluk
of the Buldana district, the cultivation of hemp
plant has hitherto been made for the production of
ganja and bhang alone :—Ghamgaon, Sutale, Burti,
Godhnapur, Mendhali, Warkhed.
The hemp plant has never been cultivated for its
fibre or seed.
The extent of cultivation, as ascertained from
the records in the Deputy Commissioner's Office,
during the past several years, will be seen from
the following figures :—
Years.
1878-79
1879-80
A.
18
34
Area.
G.
25
1
20
-1-880-81
2
1881-82
44 34
1882-83
33
0
1883-84
29 37
1884-85
16 30
1885-86
17
0
1886-87
17 30
1887-88
12 34
1888-89
18 17
1889-90
16 34
1890-91
0
1891-92
6 34
1892-93
12 39
8. From the above figures the average area under
cultivation of the hemp plant during the last fif-
teen years comes to 19 A. 9 G., while the average
cultivation during the past nine years is far below the
average area above arrived at. The average during
the past nine years is also larger than the area
under cultivation during 1892-93. The cultivation
is therefore evidently on its decrease.
The decrease may be attributed to the fact that
although the produce of the hemp plant is lucra-
tive in itself, yet the compulsion to the cultivators
to sell the produce to the license vendors alone, and
the prohibition to export the produce out of Berar,
do not fetch for them good prices expected by them,
to cover the expenditure incurred in paying off the
license fee as well as in the cultivation of the hemp
plant.
9. The land in which the hemp seed is to be
sown is first prepared by means of a plough before
the commencement of monsoons. The seed is sown
just at the time the jawari sowings are made, by
an implement called tifan. But the hemp seed is
put into the ground at a distance of about a cubic
foot to allow the plant to grow in good foliage
when the seed shoots out and grows into a plant of
about a foot in height. The male plants, called
bhangara, are picked out and thrown away as use-
less, they being very injurious to the produce of
ganja from the female plants. Experts are requir-
ed to recognize the male plants.
The hemp drug crop is an autumnal one, and
watered by means of rain. But during droughts
the crop is required to be watered from wells.
When the plant grows to the height of about 5
feet, it becomes flowered and budded, and is then
in a fit state of being harvested.
10. The cultivators of hemp plant do not neces-
sarily form a special class. Any agricultural culti-
vator can become a cultivator of hemp plant.
11. There being no seed available of the wild
hemp in the district, the plants cultivated for the
production of ganja are not raised therefrom.
12. No, I am not aware of any special cultiva-
tion of wild hemp.
13. The cultivation of the hemp plant is not re-
stricted to any particular part of the district. It is
freely permitted under certain restriction, viz., the
cultivator of the plant is required to obtain a license
from the Deputy Commissioner on payment of Rs.
10 for every acre or part of an acre of land intend-
ed to be cultivated with the same. Notwithstand-
ing the cultivation is made only in Mulkapur taluk,
and that too in very few villages. In the other
two taluks, viz., Chikli and Mehkar, no cultivation
of the hemp plant is made or ever attempted.
The soil required for hemp plant cultivation
should be rich black soil suitable for kharif or au-
tumnal crops.
14. The hemp plant products, viz., ganja and
bhang, alone are prepared in villages of the Mulka-
pur taluk, mentioned in answer to question No. 7.
The figures for the extent of the produce are not
available.
15. The following are the methods of prepara-
tion of hemp plant for—
A. Smoking.—The flowered and budded portion
of the hemp plant, which is called ganja, is
separated from stems and seed, if any. The
same is then taken on the palm of the left
hand and then mixed with water by rub-
bing it with the right hand thumb. After
it is properly cleansed a little quantity of
tobacco is mixed with it. The preparation
is then smoked in chillum.
Ganja is not used for eating or drinking pur-
poses.
B.
E a t i n g .
— B h a n g ,
i . e . ,
t h e l e a v e s o f t h e h e m p
plant, are separated from the stock and dried.
The dried mass is cleansed with water and
fried in ghee. It is then pounded and mixed
with sugar before it is eaten.
A kind of sweetmeat is also prepared from bhang.
The leaves of the plant are soaked in water
and then pounded. The green coloured juice
obtained from them is put into boiled sugar.
This preparation, when cooled, is formed into
small cakes, which are called majum wadis.
They are generally eaten by Muhammadans
at the Muharram festival.
Another kind of sweetmeat called yakuti is pre-
pared from bhang in the same way as ma-
jum, with this difference that in preparing
yakuti bhang massala consisting of carda-
mom, aniseed, nutmegs, almonds, saffron,
etc., are mixed with boiled sugar, while the
majum preparation does not require these
ingredients. Y akuti is generally used by
the rich.
C. Drinking.— T h e
d r i e d l e a v e s o f t h e h e m p
plant are first cleansed with water. Pepper,
dry buds of rose, poppy-seed, aniseed and
cardamoms, etc., are mixed with it. The
preparation is then pounded and mixed with
water, to it milk and sugar are added, and the
whole becomes a good cooling drink in hot
weather. The drink is called a ghota.
16. The bhang drink is prepared by people in
their own houses. But the bhang produce is pre-
pared only by the cultivator in fields where the
plant is grown, or on threshing floor ground.
17. The preparations of the hemp drug are made
by consumers of ganja and bhang as well as by the
confectioner.
1 8 . G a n j a
and bhang do not deteriorate by keep-
ing for a period of about twelve months, after which
they do. After a couple of years, ganja and bhang
quite lose their effect. - With ordinary care they
are said to keep good for about a year. The cause
of their deterioration is said to be their exposure to