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REPORT OF THE INDIAN HEMP DRUGS COMMISSION, 1493-89
[APP.
MEMORANDUM
ON THE SYSTEM OF ADMINISTRATION IN HIS HIGHNESS THE NIZAM'S DOMINION IN RESPECT TO
THE HEMP DRUGS.
I.—The control of the growth of the Hemp plant.
1. The use of the drugs in question in this dominion being very limited, and having
never prevailed in any considerable extent, have drawn no particular attention of the adminis-
trators to attach any special rules or regulations in the shape of law in respect of the same
However, it is not allowed that any one may grow the hemp if he likes to.
Though there is no particular staff to take care of growing the hemp, yet the contractors
of the ganja sale monopoly watch this very keenly, and at their complaints and bringing the
cases to the notice of the local Revenue authorities due action is taken to destroy the crop
grown by any person for his private use.
No order or any kind of license is required for growing the hemp: any one if he knows
the secrets of growing and curing it can cultivate the same, but it is an understood law that he
must sell the produce to the authorized contractors. There not being any strict supervision or
control over this, it cannot be said that this rule is invariably and strictly observed. But at
the same time it may be noticed here that there are very limited number of cultivators in a
very few places in the whole terrritory who know the art of growing and curing ganja, and it
is grown not more than enough for the local wants.
2. As no wild hemp has been found to grow in this country, therefore no notice about it
is taken.
3. The export and import of the drugs to and from the British territories are very syste-
matically and strictly controlled by the Custom Department, and a duty of Rs. 10 per maund is
levied on the import as well as on the export of ganja and of Rs. 3-5-0 on bhang.
N.B.-Only one kind of ganja, flat, is manufactured here; the broken leaves of the plant
go as bhang, which is of very inferior kind. Charas is almost unknown in the whole dominion.
* 1. Arsenic.
2. Stryehnia.
3. Buchnag.
II.-The sale of hemp drugs.
4. The sale of ganja is controlled and restricted by giving the monopoly of it to one
person or company for a limited jurisdiction. The system of giving the monopoly as a
rule is uniform for the State. It is auctioned at the end of a financial year by the Revenue
officers in their districts, in part and parcel for one or more years. In small districts the
contract of the sale is given together with other poisons
three or four* in number, and even with the opium, because,
owing to the small sale of the drugs in question, people do
not venture to take them separately.
The contract for
Hyderabad City is given by the Excise Department. The contract given by the Revenue
officers also remain subject to the administration and orders of the Commissioners of the
Department.
5. The said contractors are authorized to purchase ganja from the growers—they keep a
store of it and sell it to the retail vendors, or keep their own shops in their jurisdiction. These
contractors generally sublet the retail vending, and supply the drugs at some fixed or the
market rates.
The contractors purchase their stock from the places within the State
which have reputation for growing ganja. Only in very bad years, when the ganja crop
totally fails here, it is imported from the British territory, and the same cause makes it
export. The custom duty on the frontier of the State is against the trade.
6. There is no restriction of any other kind in the sale of the drugs-it can be sold at
any place, to any person, and up to any quantity.
No site for shops is fixed by the Government authorities, i.e., the Excise or Revenue
officers. In the districts no license for the shop is required and no shops are auctioned.
The stock kept by the wholesale contractors and the shops of the retail vendors are
under no inspection and supervision.
The sale being so. small, and there being no fear or chance of any kind of smuggling,
no supervision is necessary.
7. No rate of the whole or retail sales of the drugs is fixed. The average price of the
who lesale of ganja has been about Rs. 25 per maund, and to the retail vendors it is sold from