Drug Abuse

CHAPTER XV.

EXISTING SYSTEMS DESCRIBED.

591. The various systems of excise administration obtaining in the different provinces have been described in the memoranda which are published in Vol. III Appendices. A brief notice of these systems will be reproduced here, and the question how far they fulfil the conditions of the policy above noted will then be discussed.

592. The law in force in Bengal is contained chiefly in the Bengal Excise Act, VII of 1878, and rules passed thereunder.
The principal provisions are as follows :—

Without a license from the Collector, the manufacture of ganja, charas, and bhang, and every preparation and admixture of the same, and the cultivation of plants from which they are produced, are prohibited (section 5).

No person is allowed to sell any of the above drugs or preparations or admixtures of them without a license from the Collector (section ii).

Fees for licenses for retail sale of the above drugs may be fixed by the Board of Revenue, and will be payable accordingly (section 13).

No license fees are leviable for the privilege of wholesale vend. The limit for retail sale is as follows : Ganja or bhang, or any preparation or admixture of the same, one quarter of a ser ; charas, or any preparation or admixture of the same, 5 tolas weight. No licensed wholesale vendor is allowed to sell by retail and no licensed retail vendor is allowed to sell by wholesale, but the same person may hold a license for wholesale and retail vend. The Board may fix a larger quantity as the limit for retail sale (sections 15 and 6o).

No cultivator of the plants producing ganja or bhang may sell such plants, or any ganja or bhang produced therefrom, to any one other than a person duly authorized to purchase the same by pass or license from the Collector (section 16).

No person, not being a licensed manufacturer or vendor or a person duly authorized to supply licensed vendors, may have in his possession a greater quantity of ganja, charas, and bhang, or any preparation or admixture of the same, than that specified above as the limit for retail sale (section I 7).

The penalty attached to the breach of this provision does not apply to authorized cultivators (section 62).

The Board may, with the sanction of the Local Government, declare that the possession of any foreign ganja, charas, or bhang, or any preparation or admixture of the same, is absolutely prohibited in any specified tract, or that such possession shall be limited to specified quantities, unless a license has been granted for the possession of a larger quantity of such article. The Board may fix the fee or duty payable for such license (section 17-A). Under this section the limit of legal possession of Garhjat ganja has been fixed at 5 tolas.

The Board, with the sanction of the Local Government, may frame rules for prescribing the conditions under which ganja, charas, or bhang, or any preparation or admixture of the same, manufactured in any part of British India beyond the territory to which the Act extends may be imported, and, where no duty has previously been paid on such articles, the conditions under which they may be imported and bonded within such limits (section 19-A).

The Collector may, with the sanction of the Board, let in farm the duties leviable on the abovementioned drugs, or any of them, in any district or division of a district (section 2o).

The Board may prescribe rules for the invitation and acceptance of tenders for such farms, for the requisition of security for the due fulfilment of the engagements entered into by the farmers, and as to the form and conditions of the lease. The Board may regulate the form and conditions of all licenses granted under the Act (section 28).

The Board may frame rules for the grant of licenses or passes to persons purchasing, transporting, or storing ganja, charas, or bhang for the supply of the licensed vendors of those drugs, and may place the cultivation, preparation, and store of such drugs under such supervision as may be deemed necessary to secure the duty leviable thereon (section 35).

593 With reference to the above provisions, the Commission observe that there is no definition in the Act of " manufacture," and that, apart from the provision relating to possession, the collection of bhang from the hemp plant, which hardly comes under the designation of " manufacture," does not appear to be prohibited or con. trolled.

594. The system which has been elaborated under these provisions of the law will now be briefly described. Though the hemp plant ganja. grows spontaneously in many districts of Bengal, this fact does not seem to affect the ganja administration to any great extent, as ganja, except of a very inferior sort, cannot be manufactured from the wild plants. Cultivation of the hemp plant for the production of ganja is only allowed in an area of about 64 square miles in the Rajshahi Division. Every cultivator has to take out a license for which no fee is charged. Within the area above mentioned, which, for the purposes of ganja administration, is placed under the jurisdiction of the Collector of Rajshahi, though it lies in the three districts of Rajshahi, Dinajpur, and Bogra, applications for licenses are granted, unless there be any valid objection, and remain in force for one working year. The average area of ganja cultivation is 2,220 bighas, equal to 740 acres. What follows is in the words of the Hon'ble D. R. Lyall, c.s.i., Member, Board of Revenue : "The cultivation is inspected by supervisors throughout the period of growth, the areas cultivated being compared with the licenses. The cultivator cuts his crop not necessarily under the supervisor's eye, nor does he require to get permission, but he gives 3 days' notice of his intention to cut. The manufacture is done by the raiyat at his own option as to time and place. The supervisors move about and supervise the manufacture as far as they can. Practically the bulk of the manufacture is not completed under the supervisor's eye. When the manufacture is complete, the raiyat carries his produce to his own store under the latter part of rule II of section xx of the Excise Manual, page 155, there being no public godown large enough to receive the whole crop. A license is given to the raiyat describing the quantity and kind of ganja he is allowed to store, and authorizing him to keep it until he disposes of it to a licensed purchaser. The amount is arrived at by the supervisors by inspection of the crop after manufacture and the number of bundles into which it is manufactured. The crop is made up by the raiyat into 2-ser bundles, and by long practice the measurement is wonderfully exact, though it is done by guess. The raiyats' store is generally situated close to his manufacturing ground. The wholesale dealer comes to the mahal armed with a license from the Collector of his own district giving the amount he is authorized to export. He makes his own arrangements with the raiyats, visiting any store he likes, and, as far as I know, unaccompanied by a supervisor or any excise officer. Having made his bargain, the dealer brings the ganja to the Government gola, where it is weighed, and the sale recorded on the back of the raiyat's license as well as in the Government books. No pass is required for the removal of the ganja from the raiyats' store to the Government gola. The dealer's consignment is sealed at the Government gola, and then carried by the wholesale dealer under pass to his gola at the head-quarters or sub-division of the place of import. There it is placed under double lock, one being in the possession of the dealer, and the other in the possession of the Excise Deputy Collector. The wholesale dealer sells to the retail vendor at his own price, and the retail vendor sells to the public at his own price, except in one district, where a maximum limit is imposed under the terms of the arrangement with the monopolist. This district is Cuttack. The right of retail vend is sold by auction."

595. The above procedure differs in one important respect from that prescribed in the rules issued by the Board, inasmuch as these rules contemplate the storing of the ganja in a public gola, and there is an exceptional provision permitting storage in a private gola, when a cultivator can satisfy the supervisor that he has a secure private place of his own. He is then allowed to store his ganja there subject to periodical inspection by the supervisor or his assistants. There is no public gola for the storage of the crop, hence the exception has become the rule.

596. Ganja is not ordinarily imported from any other British province into Bengal, but ganja grown in the Orissa Tributary Mahals (Garhjat) is imported under passes in small quantities into the districts of the Orissa Division. The rules as to storage and levy of duty on Rajshahi ganja apply mutatis mutandis to Garhjat ganja. Any vendor licensed to retail Rajshahi ganja may sell Garhjat ganja under the same license.
The Excise Commissioner states that Garhjat ganja is largely smuggled into Orissa. This subject will be again mentioned further on. With this exception, the growth and trade in ganja in Bengal is fairly under control. The cases of illicit cultivation are few. They are all of a petty description, such as the growing of a few plants (very often only a single plant) in the courtyards of houses more for the purpose of using the leaves as bhang than for manufacturing ganja. Cases of unlicensed sale of ganja, though comparatively numerous, generally represent sales of the excised drug by petty dealers who have obtained their supplies from licensed vendors, and often occur from the licensed shops being too few to supply the local demand. The system in force in the Ganja Mahal in the Rajshahi Division gives some opportunity for illicit disposal of the ganja, partly owing to the inadequacy of the supervising staff, and partly to the storage arrangements above mentioned ; but the principal authorities are of opinion that very little smuggling actually occurs. Mr. Lyall, while admitting that the facility afforded for smuggling constitutes the weak part of the Bengal system, gives the following reasons for his belief that it does not exist to any extent : " One at least is that I have never come across a case of smuggled ganja, though cases of opium smuggling are not uncommon. The safeguards against illicit practices are the concentration of the area of growth and the crop estimate made by the supervisors when the crop is on the ground. The bulkiness of ganja is an additional safeguard as compared with opium. We have never within my knowledge discovered a cultivator disposing of his crop illegally. Of course, if there were collusion between the protective establishment and the cultivators, this safeguard would be of little use ; but, as a fact, I believe the establishment is trustworthy "

597. Charas is not made in Bengal. A very small amount is imported from Upper India under passes, and after paying duty is sold by licensed vendors.

598. There is no licensed cultivation of the hemp plant for production of bhang in Bengal. Bhang is either imported from the North-Western Provinces or collected for the market from the spontaneous growth which abounds in Bhagalpur and in districts north of the Ganges, especially Monghyr and Purnea. It has been observed above that this collection of the leaves hardly comes within the term " manufacture," and no license is, therefore, legally necessary for the process. But legal possession of bhang, except by licensed persons, is limited to 4 ser, hence all transactions of any importance require a license. On the other hand, there is no restriction on the use of the hemp plant in its green state. It is only when prepared to be used, stored, or sold as a narcotic or stimulant that it comes under Excise rules. Passes are required for the purchase or obtaining of bhang for export to another district, or for sale, which must be accompanied by a license from the Collector of the district into which the bhang is to be conveyed, or in which it is to be stored. The rules for storage are similar to those for ganja, and a small duty is levied when the bhang is removed from the warehouse to be taken to the shop for retail sale. The extensive growth of the plant in the districts above mentioned renders control of transactions in bhang very difficult, and it is certain that the amount brought to record and dealt with under Excise rules does not by any means represent all the bhang consumed in Bengal. " The use of untaxed bhang, " says the Excise Commissioner, " is general. " In January 1893 orders were issued by the Excise Commissioner with the object of extirpating the spontaneous growth of the plant, and thus bringing bhang under more efficient excise control ; but the orders were cancelled by the Bengal Government in the following June on the ground that the attempt was impracticable, and likely to have no result except petty oppression. There is therefore practically little control over the production and use of bhang in Bengal ; and although the revenue from excise bhang has increased considerably, this is mainly owing to the fact that the duty is very low and not worth evading on the part of the licensed vendors.

599 The Act is almost silent on the subject of wholesale vendors. The agency by which the retail vendors are supplied has grown up from the exigencies of the case. Every wholesale vendor must rent one of the warehouses provided by Government for storing ganja, or must provide one to the satisfaction of the Collector who grants the license. Where warehouses are provided by Government, the Commissioner determines the number of private warehouses, if any, to be licensed. The number of wholesale dealers in any place must not exceed the number of Government and licensed warehouses. Where the number of applicants exceeds the number of Government warehouses, the leases of the latter are put up to auction. These middlemen reap large profits, and to a large extent control the market. They very often combine the functions of retail vendor with those of wholesale vendor. Mr. Price, Collector of Rajshahi, says of them that they superintend the manufacture of the ganja to suit their own tastes, and practically become the owners of the ganja without assuming the responsibilities that devolve on them. He says that their absence from the ganja tract would itself cause the decline of the cultivation. Out of this state of things another class has arisen in the ganja brokers. These men negotiate for the sale of the standing or manufactured crop to wholesale vendors. Forms of licenses to ganja brokers and wholesale vendors have been issued by the Board.

600. For the retail vend of ganja, charas, and bhang separate licenses are issued. There is no restriction as to the price at which the drugs are to be sold to the public. The number of shops is fixed by the Collector according to the demand for the drug. The licenses are sold by public auction for one year. Notwithstanding occasional fluctuations, the number of ganja shops has been reduced in the last 20 years from 4,398 to 2,672. The number of charas shops decreased largely down to 1889-9o, since when there has been an increase, but not nearly to the former figure. The number of bhang shops has been more stationary. Consumption on the premises is not prohibited. There is no restriction as to the persons to whom the drugs may be sold. Local opinion is not ordinarily consulted regarding the establishment of shops, but attention is paid to any reasonable objection raised against any particular site.

 

601. The revenue from hemp drugs in Bengal is realized in the form of direct duty and license fees for the right of retail vend at a fixed shop only. The duties per ser levied on the drugs warehoused are as follows :—

	For the province generally	For the Orissa Division
Ganja:	Rs. A. P.	Rs. A. P.
Chur	900	780
Round	780	640
Flat, small twigs "      large    "	740 600	480
Charas	800	800
Bhang	080	080

 

 

 

The duty is levied before the drugs are removed from the wholesale dealer's warehouse. The duty is calculated on the actual weight of the drug issued, except in the case of charas, half the duty on which is levied at the time of taking out the pass for the importation of the drug.

The importance of the ganja traffic in Bengal may be gathered from the fact that in the year 1892-93 1,510 maunds were exported to other provinces and 5,451 maunds paid duty, amounting to Rs. 12,80,631. The license fees for retail sale of ganja amounted to Rs. 11,05,435 in addition. The total revenue from charas, of which only I 1 maunds 26 stirs paid duty, was Rs. 9,097, and from bhang, of which 1,033 maunds paid duty, Rs. 53,558.

602. The law in force in Assam is the same as in Bengal, and the Bengal Excise Manual is followed.

603. There is no licensed cultivation of hemp for the production of the drugs. Excise ganja is supplied from Bengal under pass, and pays duty in the province. The vend of charas and bhang is practically forbidden, as no licenses for their sale have been taken out. Wild hemp grows spontaneously in many parts of the province, and especially in the hill tracts. The officiating Excise Commissioner says : " There is nothing to show that the trade in the wild plant is sufficiently large to compete seriously with excise ganja, unless possibly in the Khasi Hills, where the continuous decrease in the consumption of the Rajshahi drug can, I think, only be attributed to the cheapness of wild hemp and the great facilities for its use. The excise administration of the district is attended by abnormal difficulties owing to the fact that the Khasi Hills are parcelled out into the territories of many semi-independent chiefs. The wild plant is used by habitual consumers only as a pis alien and when their supply of the excise ganja runs short." This view is not shared by the Excise Commissioner, Mr. Driberg, who says : " I think this so-called wild hemp affects our revenue very considerably. It is used by certain consumers, and is also mixed by vendors with excise ganja and sold." Mr. Driberg states that he does not think there is any such thing as wild ganja. As a rule the plant is found in lands occupied by the owner's homestead. From this he infers that the growth is very ordinarily surreptitious. He thinks that the practice of Deputy Commissioners in treating this growth as unlicensed cultivation differs considerably. A circular issued by the Chief Commissioner in October 1882 contains a ruling which appears to be the cause of this diversity of practice. The concluding portion runs as follows : " You will observe that in rule 2, section 17, of Chapter XV, of the Board's Rules it is said that ' no restriction is imposed on the use of the hemp plant in its green state for medical or other purposes, or on its manipulation for the manufacture of fibre. But any preparation of the plant to be used, stored, and sold as a narcotic or stimulant is prohibited except under the rules framed by the administration.' This rule mentions the medicinal use of the plant only ' in its green state ;' but if, as appears to be the case, the wild hemp is also used for medicine for cattle when dried, the Chief Commissioner desires that the rule may be liberally interpreted, and no penalty imposed when it is probable that the cultivation or the drying and storing of it was only for this purpose. Whether this is so or not is a question of fact." Mr. Driberg, whose experience of Assam is unique, does not believe that the plant is used to any extent for cattle. He thinks that it is a mere excuse made by those who really. want to use it. He thinks the circular was unnecessary, and issued on insufficient information. The subject is discussed in Chapter X.

604. The system of vend is the same as in Bengal. The amount of ganja which paid duty in 1892-93 was 620 maunds, representing duty to the sum of Rs. 1,39,545. License fees amounted to Rs. 1,64,088.

605, The excise on hemp drugs in the North-Western Provinces is administered under Act XXII of 1881 and rules thereunder.
The principal provisions of the law.are as follows :—

The chief revenue authority may from time to time make such rules to restrict and regulate the cultivation of hemp and the preparation of intoxicating drugs therefrom as it may deem necessary to secure the duty leviable in respect of those drugs (section f t).

No intoxicating drug may be sold except under and in accordance with the terms of a license granted under the provisions of the Act. But any cultivator of the hemp plant may sell, any intoxicating drug prepared from his plant to any person licensed under the Act to sell the same, or to any person authorized to purchase the same, by the Collector's order in writing (section 12).

Subject to the rules made by the chief revenue authority under the power conferred by the Act, the Collector may grant licenses for the retail sale of intoxicating drugs within his district, or any part thereof, or at any place therein. Licenses for the sale of intoxicating drugs wholesale may be granted only by such officer as the Local Government from time to time appoints (section 13),

The Collector may, with the sanction of the chief revenue authority, let in farm the fees leviable in any district or part of a district on licenses for the retail sale of intoxicating drugs (section 16).

No person may have in his possession any larger quantity of the drugs than that specified as the limit of retail sale unless he is permitted to manufacture or sell the same. This amount is—

Ganja or charas, or any preparation or admixture thereof, 5 tolas.
Bhang, or any preparation or admixture thereof, one quarter °La. sdr (section 22).

The chief controlling revenue authority may from time to time make rules consistent with the Act as to the fee payable for each license or farm and as to the form of any license or farming lease (section 55).

The Act contains no provision relating to manufacture, import, export, or transport.

606. Under the rules now in force the cultivation of the hemp plant is free to all parties. There is no check therefore on the production of hemp drugs, and the possession of the drug withourlimit of amount is permitted to all cultivators, to owners of land in which the plant grows spontaneously, to licensed vendors, or to persons duly authorized to supply licensed vendors. This permission is also considered to apply to the sale of their bhang by owners of spontaneous produce. Restriction, therefore, only operates when the cultivator sells his produce, and there is practically little, if any, check on the supply of the drugs produced in the province. The Excise Commissioner states that ganja of fair or good quality can be made, and is made locally. Charas is produced to some extent in Kumaon ; and as the hemp plant grows abundantly in all the montane and submontane districts, bhang can be produced to any extent.

607. The ganja consumed in the province is mainly derived from Bengal, the Central Provinces, Gwalior, Bundelkhand, and, in small quantities, from Nepal and Indore, possibly also from Rewah. Where the production of this ganja is under excise management, these imports are of course subject to such management. The importers of ganja and bhang are said to be all contractors holding licenses for the sale of the drugs. Charas is brought by Punjabi traders, who sell to the contractors. These traders take out no licenses, and the Excise Commissioner states that the legality of the arrangement is questionable. Some of these traders themselves hold district contracts. Nearly the whole of the bhang consumed is grown in the ' province. A certain amount is imported from the Punjab, and goes chiefly to the western districts.
Notwithstanding the silence of the Act regarding import of the drugs, a rule has been passed that no ganja, charas, or bhang shall be imported into the province except under a pass. No import duty is levied. Transport and export are also made subject to a free pass.

6o8. The Excise Commissioner is of opinion that the amount of smuggling from outside the province is quite inconsiderable, and this is confirmed by the Hon'ble A. Cadell, the Member of the Board in charge of Excise, and there is no very definite evidence to the contrary.

609. The weak point in the North-Western Provinces system of supply is that the ganja which comes from the different provinces and States abovementioned is taxed before it reaches the frontier at widely different rates, and there is no equalization of this taxation after it has reached the province. Bengal ganja pays from Rs. 6 to Rs. 9 per ser, the Khandwa ganja pays no duty but small fees which may amount to Rs. 2 per maund, Gwalior ganja less than Rs. 5 per maund, and Bundelkhand ganja possibly as much as Rs. 2 per maund. And these different kinds of ganja are freely available under existing regulations to the licensed vendor, who has it in his power to play them off on the consumer in such a way as will best -repay him without damaging his credit. In addition to this, the cultivation and manufacture of ganja locally is under no legal control. It is unnecessary to say more on this subject, as the Excise authorities have recorded their opinion that the present system needs reform, and proposals have been made which will be considered further on.

610. The right of selling the drugs is farmed to contractors, who are at  liberty to procure the drugs wherever they like, and sell them at any price they choose. No distinction is drawn between the different kinds of drugs all are included in the same license, and are stored by the farmer on his own premises. The contracts are usually for an entire district ; in some cases for tahsils or parganas. There is nothing to prevent a contractor having separate contracts for several districts. The ordinary period is for one year, but contracts are now often given for two or three years, and the longer periods always fetch proportionally higher sums. The number and locality of the retail shops is fixed by the Collector subject to the orders of the Board, and is revised from time to time. The contractor either sub-lets the shops or works them through his servants. As a rule he holds the best shops in the large towns in direct management and sub-lets the rest. The con-. tracts are sold by auction. The number of capitalists engaged in the trade is not very large, and nothing is commoner among them than combinations to keep down the price. The above account is taken from the Excise Commissioner's memorandum, who adds : " It is a defect in the system that it leaves the whole of the revenue collected here to be determined by the competition of the auctions. The advantages of the system are that a large revenue is very easily and cheaply collected, and that smuggling and other evasive illegal acts are minimized. The contractor has no reason to commit them himself, and it is his interest to detect any one attempting them. This is no small advantage from an administrative point of view. Retail prices are under the existing system kept at the highest possible point."
Consumption of drugs on the premises is not prohibited in the shop licenses, nor is there any restriction as to the persons to whom the drugs may be sold. Local opinion is not ordinarily consulted. Mr. Cadell says : " Hitherto the objection to shops has always come from above, viz., from the Board, the Commissioner, or the Collector."

611. The statistics of import and export are very defective. The Excise Commissioner estimates the average imports of ganja and charas as follows :—

Ganja ... 4,000 to 4,500 maunds.
Chars ... 1,100 to 1,200    "

The license fees realized from the auction of the monopoly of vend amounted to Rs. 7,04,788, and this represents the whole of the taxation levied in the province.

612. The excise administration is based upon Act XXII of 1881 (see North-Western Provinces) and rules thereunder. Ganja is practically unknown in the Punjab. Charas is imported from Yarkand vid Kashmir and Ladak and from Bokhara, and perhaps other Central Asian countries vid Afghanistan. No charas is produced in the province except to a trifling extent in the hills for private consumption.

Bhang is collected from the wild plant which grows plentifully in the Sub-Himalayan districts. It is also cultivated to a small extent in Multan and in the Derajat Division, but the total area of cultivation is probably less than too acres. Cultivation is not controlled, and a cultivator cannot be prosecuted for the possession of bhang, though he is only allowed to sell his produce to a licensed vendor.

613. The traders who bring charas from Yarkand are not licensed, but they have to obtain a pass from the Joint Commissioner at Leh or from the Deputy Commissioner of the district where they enter the Punjab, and take it for countersignature to the Deputy Commissioner or Collector of every district in the Punjab or the North-Western Provinces which they may enter with the charas. The consignment may be opened at any head-quarters station or tahsil while on its way to its destination, and a portion of its contents may be sold to the farmer of excise for drugs, the fact being recorded on the pass and the package resealed. When a consignment is conveyed by rail, the provision requiring it to be taken to the Deputy Commissioner or Collector of every district through which it passes is dispensed with. The transport of bhang from the districts of growth to those of consumption is regulated by passes, no duty or fee of any sort being charged.

614. Hitherto the excise income from intoxicating drugs in the Punjab has been derived solely from the monopoly of sale within tahsils or other sub-divisions of districts. In some districts the monopoly of opium and other drugs prepared from the poppy is farmed separately from that of the hemp drugs, while in others the same farm includes both. Ordinarily the farm or license is held for the year, the fee payable being determined by auction. The present rules make no provision for the issue of wholesale licenses, but the new rules are to provide for such licenses. As a matter of account the fees paid in each district in respect of the combined opium and hemp drug licenses, where these are held together, are distributed between the two heads of receipt in a proportion which is supposed to represent the actual value of each set of licenses. This proportion varies from district to district. As a result of the practice described above, the number and locality of the shops are fixed beforehand from year to year, and as a matter of fact they are seldom altered.

The Punjab system of excise administration in regard to hemp drugs was described by the Excise Commissioner in his report for 1892 as " going very near to reversing the principle of a maximum of revenue with a minimum of consumption." In the report for 1893 the Excise Commissioner says : " Taking Rs. 1,70,854 to be approximately the real value of the licenses for the sale of hemp drugs, it represents the total taxation now levied on a consumption of upwards of 1,000 maunds of charas and of nearly 4,000 maunds of bhang." This is "the weakest part of our excise system in the Punjab. It is hoped that we are now within measurable distance of arrangements which will give us complete control over the import trade in charas, and enable us to impose a duty which can be gradually raised. Owing to the fact that the plant grows wild in so 'many districts, and is to be had for the gathering, while charas comes in by a few well recognised routes and can scarcely escape us, it is much more difficult to deal with the trade in bhang efficiently. But I am in hopes that the Government will agree before very long to the introduction of some measures for the direct taxation of bhang too."

In the form of license for retail vend of the drugs, there is no provision against consumption on the premises. There is a provision prohibiting the supply of the drugs to any insane person or to children. It may be noted, though the matter is of no practical moment in the Punjab, that the limit of retail sale for ganja is fixed in this form at 4 of a ser as for bhang, whereas under the Act it must not exceed 5 tolas. It seems to be the practice to consult the wishes of the people before new shops are opened.

615. The question of imposing a duty en charas and bhang, to which reference is made above, has been very fully discussed, and an Act (X of 1893) has been passed in which power has been taken to impose on any intoxicating drug brought by land from beyond the limits of India into any territory to which Act XXII of 188 extends, or into any specified part thereof, such duty as the Governor-General in Council thinks fit. In pursuance of the provisions of this enactment, it has been proposed to establish golas to which all charas should be taken on entering the province, and which it should be allowed to leave only under a license or pass, for which a fee should be levied at the rate. of 8 annas a ser. The revision of the Excise rules so as to give effect to this proposal is under consideration. The taxation of bhang is a more difficult matter owing to the prevalence of the growth of the plant, and the consideration of proposals relating thereto made by the Excise Commissioner has been postponed until the tax on charas has been introduced. The opinion of the Punjab Government on this question is that " in regard to matters of this sort, which involve an interference with ancient and firmly rooted habits of large masses of the people, it is desirable to proceed cautiously, doing one thing at a time."

616. In the Central Provinces Act XXII of 1881 is in force (see North-Western Provinces).

617. In this province, however, advantage has been taken of the provisions of the law to prohibit the cultivation of the hemp plant except under license, and licenses are now only given in the Khandwa tahsil of the Nimar district. The plant does not grow wild, and illicit cultivation has for the most part been suppressed. Charas is hardly known. If imported, it pays a duty of Rs. to per maund. No bhang properly speaking is produced, but the refuse ganja is used as bhang.

The supply of ganja is amply sufficient for the provincial consumption. Import of ganja from other provinces or Native. States is not permitted. There is a certain amount of illicit import from Hyderabad, Berar, Indore, the Bombay Presidency, Gwalior, and the Tributary States of Orissa, and this constitutes the principal difficulty of the ganja administration in this province. A little bhang is imported from the North-Western Provinces under passes.

618. The harvesting of the crop in the Khandwa tahsil is supervised by a special establishment, and the cultivators are bound to bring the whole of their produce to a Government storehouse at Khandwa. The drug is purchased at the storehouse by the wholesale vendors of the province, the terms of the purchase being arranged between the cultivators and the wholesale vendors without interference on the part of Government. Wholesale vendors of other parts of British India and foreign dealers are also freely permitted to buy. No direct tax is imposed on cultivation, but the following fees are payable at the storehouse :—

(1) A storage fee of 6 pies per maund per mensem payable by cultivators or purchasers of ganja kept in the storehouse. Cultivators and wholesale vendors of ganja in the Central Provinces are exempted from payment of this fee for 30 days.
(2) Permit fees at Re. 1 per maund payable by all purchasers of ganja, other than Government licensed vendors, on account of all ganja .    for which permission to purchase is granted.
(3) Registration fees at Re. 1 per maund payable by all purchasers of ganja, other than Central Provinces licensed vendors, on account of all ganja of which the transfer by sale is registered.

619. The sole monopoly of wholesale vend in the province is granted by licenses to wholesale vendors approved by the Excise Commissioner. The licenses are given either for a district or for each tahsil. Tenders are invited annually for the licenses for wholesale vend, and the tenders must state what fee per ser, in addition to a direct duty of Rs. 2 per ser (except in Sambalpur and the south-east part of the Raipur district, where it is Re. 1 per ser), the applicants are prepared to pay for the privilege. The wholesale vendor is required to supply the retail vendors with ganja at Rs. 3 per ser (Rs. 2 in Sambalpur and the south-east part of the Raipur district). The ganja purchased by the wholesale vendor is conveyed under a transport pass or import license to a storehouse belonging to the licensee at the district or tahsil head-quarters, one key of which is kept by the Tahsildar, by whom it is issued according to the requirements of the wholesale vendor. Duty is only charged on cleaned ganja, the refuse being destroyed both at the Government storehouse at Khandwa and at the district or tahsil storehouse.

620. The monopoly of retail vend is usually auctioned separately for each shop, except in large towns, where the shops are generally sold to one person. The localities of all shops are fixed by the Deputy Commissioner subject to the control of the Excise Commissioner. All retail vendors are entitled to be supplied with ganja by the wholesale vendor at Rs. 3 per ser, and may charge their own retail price to consumers. The number of shops is regulated by the demand for the drug. In those districts which are specially exposed to smuggling from foreign States, shops are licensed more freely.
Every wholesale vendor of ganja is given a license for the retail vend of bhang free of charge. Licenses for retail vend of bhang are not granted to other persons, and no wholesale vendor may import without a written permit from the Deputy Commissioner. A duty of Rs. 2 per ser is levied on all foreign bhang sold, and the rate of sale to the public must not exceed Rs. 3 per ser, Stocks of bhang are kept under control in the same way as ganja.
Consumption on the premises is prohibited by a clause in the retail licenses. There is no restriction as to the persons to whom ganja or bhang may be sold. Local opinion as to the opening of shops is not ordinarily taken, but objections, if raised, are considered.

621. The average area of ganja cultivation at Khandwa during the past five years has been 785 acres ; the average outturn about 8,000 maunds, of which about 5,000 have been exported and i,000 consumed in the province, the remainder having been destroyed as unfit for sale. The revenue derived from this source has been Rs. 2,18,000, of which Rs. 1,36,500 has been from license fees, and the rest from fixed duty. There is no revenue from charas, and from bhang only about Rs. 1,000.

622. The Madras Abkari Act (I of 1886) contains extensive provisions for the control of the cultivation of hemp, and the manufacture, sale, and possession of hemp drugs.

But as it has only been brought into force in the Presidency in so far as it relates to the sale of intoxicating drugs, there is no need in describing the system at present in force to refer to any of the other provisions.

The principal provisions in force are as follows :-

No intoxicating drug may be sold without a license from the Collector, provided that a cultivator or owner of any plant from which an intoxicating drug is produced may sell without a license those portions of the plant from which the intoxicating drug is manufactured or produced to any person licensed under the Act to sell, manufacture, or export intoxicating drugs (section is).

The Governor in Council may grant to any person or persons on such conditions and for such period as may seem fit the exclusive or other privilege-

( 1 ) of manufacturing by wholesale, or
(2) of selling by retail, or
(3) of manufacturing or supplying by wholesale and selling by retail,

any intoxicating drugs within any local area. A license from the Collector is necessary for the exercise of such privilege (section 16). It may be noted here that there is no definition in the Act of wholesale and retail, and that no such definition exists in any notification under the Act. •

A duty shall, if the Governor in Council so direct, be levied on all intoxicating drugs sold in any part of the Presidency of such amount as the Governor in Council may from time to time prescribe (section 17).

Such duty may be levied by fees on licenses for manufacture or sale (section 18).

Every license or permit granted under the Act shall be granted —

(a) on payment of such fees, if any,
(b) for such period,
(c) subject to such restrictions and on such condition, and
(d) shall be in such form and contain such particulars,

as the Governor in Council may direct either generally or in any particular instance in this behalf (section 24).

The Governor in Council may from time to time frame rules for the warehousing of intoxicating drugs, and for the removal of the same from any warehouse in which they are deposited for deposit in any other warehouse or for local consumption or export ; and for placing the storage of intoxicating drugs under such supervision and control as may be deemed necessary for the purposes of the Act;  and generally to carry out the provision of the Act or of any other law for the time being in force and relating to abkari revenue (section 29).

No rules have been framed under section 29 and no notifications issued with reference to any of the above quoted provisions of the Act relating to intoxicating drugs except such as relate to the delegation of powers and the extension to local areas of those provisions.

623. The hemp plant does not grow wild in the plains of Madras, and even in the hills there does not seem to be much spontaneous growth. But a few plants will be found in the enclosures of houses in several parts of the province, and there is systematic cultivation of the plant for ganja in the Kistna and North Arcot districts, and to a smaller extent in some others. Accurate information regarding the area under cultivation is not available, but the amount of regular cultivation accepted by the Commission is 35o acres. From this cultivation ganja is produced and bhang is collected, though statistics of bhang separate from those of ganja are not available, and the bhang of this province is probably in many cases only refuse ganja. Charas is not known.

Ganja is said to be imported in small quantities from the Hyderabad, Bastar, and Banganapalle States, and exports made to Ceylon, Mysore, Hyderabad, and Cochin territory. From other sources it has been ascertained that there is a considerable quantity of Madras ganja smuggled to Burma and Mysore, and that the administration of this branch of excise in the latter tract is thereby rendered difficult. Apart from smuggling, the exports of ganja from Madras to Mysore amounted to 1,829 local maunds (equal to 552 Indian maunds) in 189293• This alone represents a considerable area of cultivation ; and, judging from the consumption within the Presidency, it appears probable that the area of cultivation has been under-estimated.

624. The only system of administration which exists in regard to the hemp drugs consists in the restriction of the sale of these drugs to licensed vendors (with the proviso contained in section 5), and no limit of retail sale having been fixed, any person may purchase any quantity of the drugs from a licensed vendor.

Up to 1st April 1891 licenses for sale were granted on payment of fixed fees, and the amount realised from these fees was in the year 1890-91 Rs. 8,805 as compared with Rs. 4,890 the previous year. In 1891-92 the system of selling the licenses by auction was introduced, and the amount realised was Rs. 54,989. In 1892-93 it was Rs. 47,292.

The number of shops is determined by the Collector, subject to the Board's approval, and no increase can be sanctioned without the special orders of the Board obtained in each case. No form of license is to be found in the Madras Excise Manual.

There are only 246 retail licenses for the whole Presidency, or one shop for 144,781 of the population. The evidence shows that a good deal of the consumption does not pass through the shops, and that in certain tracts the drug passes freely from the cultivator to the consumer.

 

 

625. The system of administration is based upon the Bombay Act V of 1878, and rules and notifications thereunder. The principal provisions are as follows :—

 

 

Import of intoxicating drugs into any part of the Presidency is prohibited save under permit and after payment of duty, if any. If the drugs have paid customs duty, this provision does not apply (section 9),

Export is prohibited save under the same conditions. This provision does not apply to drugs imported by sea, the export of which is permitted on payment of any fee or duty, if any, leviable by law on its transhipment or exportation (section Jo).

Transport of any quantity of intoxicating drugs exceeding 40 to_las is prohibited save under permit (section 12).

Manufacture is prohibited save under license (section 14).

Sale is prohibited save under license : provided that no such license is necessary for the sale by a cultivator or owner of any plant from which an intoxicating drug is produced of those portions of the plant from which the intoxicating drug is manufactured or produced to a licensed vendor, manufacturer, or exporter (section 16).

The maximum quantity which may be sold by retail at one time or to one and the same person in the aggregate on any one day within any defined local area or place is half an Indian ser or 40 tolas (section 17 and notifications thereunder).

Whenever a license is granted for the manufacture or sale of any intoxicating drug, and whenever the import, export, transport, or removal from place to place of any intoxicating drug is permitted, such duty shall be levied as the Collector, acting under the general or special order of Government, thinks fit (section 27).

Under this section notifications have been issued prescribing that the duty leviable on account of a license for the joint privileges of manufacture and retail sale of intoxicating drugs shall be fixed by the Collector, who before granting any such license shall put up the said privileges to auction.

For a permit for the import or export of any intoxicating drug, or for its transport between any two places not situated within the same district, duty subject to certain exemptions is levied at the following rate :—

If the amount does not exceed lo Indian maunds    •••    5
For every additional 2 Indian maunds or fraction thereof    •••

Every license, permit, or pass granted under the Act is granted—,

(a) on payment of such fees, if any,
(b) for such period,
(c) subject to such restrictions and on such conditions, and
(d) shall be in such form and contain such particulars as Government directs (section 30).

626. The wild plant is not much found in Bombay. There is cultivation of hemp for the production of ganja in a few districts, principally in Ahmednagar and Satara. The average for five years is 874 acres. The cultivator has to obtain a permit, for which no fee is levied, to enable him to dispose of his produce. The Excise Commissioner states that the cultivation is noted and watched by the village officers, and he cannot dispose of his crop without obtaining the necessary permit. There is not much evidence of the cultivation of plants in homesteads and enclosures for private use, but Mr. Sinclair, Collector of Thana, alludes to such cultivation as occurring in many private gardens. The amounts of imports of ganja from other provinces given in the statistics supplied by the Commissioner of Excise show an average for the last ten years of 1,820 maunds, and that officer in his memorandum states that the imports are chiefly from the Central Provinces. In view of the evidence the figures seem excessive, and a doubt suggests itself to the Commission whether imports from district to district have not been included.

Charas is imported in very small quantities from the Punjab. Except in •the City of Bombay, it is hardly known. Bhang is produced to a small extent in Gujarat and Palanpur. It is imported from Ujjain. The average imports for the last ten years amount to 87 maunds, but not much reliance can be placed on these figures. Probably wherever the hemp plant is grown for ganja, a certain amount of bhang is also produced.

Bombay is intersected with a large number of Native States, in some of which ganja is grown. The illicit import of this ganja does not seem to be very extensive, but owing to the cheapness of the drug in these States, and to the high maximum of legal possession (40 tolas), it is inevitable that a certain amount of smuggling should take place, and this is considered to be the case by several witnesses.

627. The rules provide that the joint privilege of manufacture and retail sale at one or more shops shall be auctioned. The vendors are the only importers of the drugs, and there are no wholesale dealers acting as middlemen between the cultivators and the farmers of retail vend. The farmers pay import and transport duties as above described. As a rule the farm of the drugs for a whole district is sold to a single vendor. The retail shops are usually fixed by the Collector. The total number of retail licenses has been very constant for some years, the average for the last ten years being 373. The number of shops, however, is larger, averaging 647 for the last ten years. The form of retail license contains no provision regarding consumption on the premises, nor regarding the persons to whom the drugs may be supplied. There is no fixed rule'regarding "local option." In some districts it is attended to carefully. Any representation by the inhabitants would have full consideration, but representations relating to the location of shops are seldom received.

628. The system of administration in Sind is in almost every respect the same as in Bombay, but there is some difference in the conditions. Neither ganja nor charas are produced, and the consumption of both is not large, though that of the latter is nearly, if not quite, equal to that of the former, and is said to be increasing. Ganja is imported from Panvel in Bombay, and charas from the Punjab. There is cultivation of hemp for bhang chiefly in Shikarpur and Karachi, averaging about 300 acres. The annual consumption of bhang is upwards of 4,000 maunds. There is a little smuggling of bhang from the Khairpur State, where it is grown and sold cheaper than in Sind.

629. Aden is supplied with hemp drugs entirely from Bombay.

630. The Abkari rules in Berar appear to rest upon the authority of a letter of the Government of India in the Financial Department, No. 3541, dated loth October 1873. Berar is not British territory, and the rules constitute a special local law issued by the Governor-General in Council in virtue of specially acquired jurisdiction. Cultivation is prohibited except under license, and Rs. Io per acre or part of an acre is levied on all cultivation. The area cultivated for production of ganja is confined to the Akola, Buldana, and Amraoti districts, and amounted in 1892-93 to 85 acres. The village officials are required to destroy any plants. of spontaneous growth, and this growth appears to be kept under. Ganja is imported frorn Khandwa, and sometimes from Khandesh. About 1,300 maunds are consumed annually. Charas is not used. No information is given regarding bhang apart from ganja, and the bhang consumed is probably that produced locally in connection with the ganja cultivation. The monopoly of vend has been hitherto sold by auction to farmers together with that of opium. This is the only taxation besides the rate on cultivation. For the future separate drug shops are to be opened. The maximum amount for retail sale is 20 tolas for ganja and bhang and 5 tolas for charas. There is no limit for legal possession. There is nothing in the nature of local option, but objections to shops are considered. The average retail price of ganja is from Rs. 2 to 2-8 per ser.

631. In these three small administrations Act XXII of 1881 is in force. There is a little cultivation in Ajmere, but none in Pishin. Coorg or Qdetta-Pishin. The contract system prevails, and the monopoly of vend is sold by auction or by tender. The amount realized is the only source of revenue. Shops are licensed, and the drugs are sold at the retailer's prices.

632. The following is a summary of the prominent features of the excise administration of the hemp drugs in the principal Provinces (except Burma) :-

Bengal.—Cultivation and manufacture of ganja controlled. Smuggling rare, except in Orissa. Ganja and charas highly taxed. Bhang little controlled.

Assam.—No cultivation of ganja permitted. Illicit cultivation rare. Some smuggling of an inferior kind of ganja from the hill tracts. Ganja highly taxed. Charas not used. Shang little controlled.

North-Western Provinces.—Cultivation and manufacture not prohibited. Some ganja produced in the province. Supply of ganja derived from Bengal,

Central Provinces, Gwalior, and Bundelkhand. Little smuggling from Native States. Charas imported mainly from the Punjab. A little charas produced in Kumaon and Garhwal, and a small quantity imported from Nepal. Bengal ganja bears the tax imposed in that province. Other ganja and charas hardly taxed. Bhang not con- trolled.

Punjab,—Ganja not used. Charas imported from Central Asia not smuggled, but hardly taxed, there being no direct duty, of which, however, the imposition is under consideration. Bhang not controlled.

Central Provinces.—Cultivation and manufacture of ganja controlled. Smuggling from Native States and adjoining Bom, bay territory not wholly suppressed. Taxation of ganja fairly high,—of charas light. Local bhang con, trolled as ganja. Foreign bhang highly taxed.

Madras.—Cultivation and manufacture not controlled. Ganja produced to a considerable extent. Taxation very light, there being no direct duty, and licenses being very few. Charas not used. Bhang little known. Few statistics available.

Bombay.—Cultivation and manufacture not controlled. Ganja produced to a considerable extent. Amount imported uncertain. Taxation light, there being no direct duty beyond import duty of 8 annas per maund. Charas hardly used, except in Sind. Bhang little known.

Berar.—Cultivation and manufacture controlled. Production of ganja not large, but imports from Khandwa considerable, Taxation light, there being no direct duty beyond a tax on cultivation of R s. 19 per acre or part of an acre.