Cannabis Cultivation

Why is in news? Apple country gets ground ready for cannabis cultivation

With the Himachal Pradesh government taking steps to legalise cannabis (hemp) cultivation in the State, growers are upbeat and optimistic about getting an economic boost.

A committee comprising lawmakers that explored the possibility of legal cultivation of cannabis recently recommended cultivation of cannabis for “non-narcotic use of cannabis for medicinal, industrial, and scientific use”.

Cannabis refers to a group of three plants with psychoactive properties, known as Cannabis sativa, Cannabis indica, and Cannabis ruderalis.

Cannabis is made up of more than 120 components, which are known as cannabinoids but experts have a pretty good understanding of two of them, known as cannabidiol (CBD) and tetrahydrocannabinol (THC).

The Mexican term 'marijuana' is frequently used in referring to cannabis leaves or other crude plant material in many countries.

The un-pollinated female plants are called hashish. Cannabis oil (hashish oil) is a concentrate of cannabinoids obtained by solvent extraction of the crude plant material or of the resin.

In India farming of cannabis has been legalised in Uttarakhand, and controlled cultivation of cannabis is also being done in some districts of Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh.

Legal Provisions in India:

The central law that deals with cannabis (weed or marijuana) in India is the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, of 1985.

The NDPS Act of 1985, imposes a ban on extracting the resin and flowers from the plant, but the law determines the method and extent of its cultivation for medicinal and scientific purposes.

Section 10 (a) (iii) of the Act empowers the States to make rules regarding the cultivation of any cannabis plant, production, possession, transport, consumption, use and purchase and sale, and consumption of cannabis (except charas).