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 administrators 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 forgrowine• the hemp : any one if he knows the secrets of growing and curine.e' 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 (it 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 systematically 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.

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 wholesale of ganja has been about Rs. 25 per maund, and to the retail vendors it is sold from Re. 1 to 1 per seer, who sell it to the consumers at the rate of one tola from about to an oz. for a quarter of an anna, the bhang from I to 2 ozs. for the same money, and the majum about one ounce for one anna.

As far as my inquiries go, about the same prices seem to prevail in all parts of the dominion in an ordinary year; but in a bad year, and when ganja is imported from outside of the State and for which the custom duty at the rate of Rs. 10 per maund is paid, the price rises. In some part it has been double last year, as owing to the excess of rain the ganja crop had failed.

8. No maximum or minimum price or amount is fixed by the Government for any kind of sale, or possession by ordinary consumers, or for retail sale of the drugs.

9. As enough of the hemp is grown in this country, as it is quite a cheap thing, as stated before, and as the customs duty is a great check upon its trade, consequently there is no temptation for any kind of smuggling from other provinces or any other Native State, the illicit cultivation, possession, or the sale of the drugs ; hence no special measures to prevent this are necessary.

10. As the Government revenue from this source is very limited and the consumption of the drugs is not great, therefore the modifications of the present excise system have not attracted any particular attention. However, at any want of the kind being felt, due actions certainly will be taken by the Excise Commissioner.

III.—The Government revenue and the duties imposed on the drugs.

Till some five years ago, the drugs in question were sold in Hyderabad City by a few shopkeepers who had enjoyed the monopoly of it for years at the payment of certain sum called " nazrana." In the districts the monopoly of the sale of them together with other poisons was also enjoyed by certain banyas uninterruptedly. The Government circular, No. 52, dated 1291 Hijri, provides that a duty from annas 2 to Rs. 3 per month will be levied on the ganja and bhang shops in the town of Hyderabad, and accordingly the nazrana or mashul was paid.

From the year 1298 F=-1889 A.D., this system was changed with giving the monopoly to the highest bidder.

As the drugs under the standing arrangements are generally included with the contract of opium or the contract of other poisons, as stated before therefore their separate account and statistics are not available ; but the following figures and the appended statements will give a fair idea of the financial aspects of the matter under report.

The statements A and B* will show the export and import for last five years of ganja and bhang respectively from and to British territory, as well as the places in His Highness's dominions subject to octroi. They prove that the trade of the drugs is not much.

When the crop in this country fails, a little of it is imported, and the same case is vice versd. The custom duty, which is Its. 10 per maund on ganja and Rs. 3-5 per maund on bhang, is perhaps against this trade.

Statement C* will show the rail-borne traffic for last five years of the druo.6 from the tract in which the hemp is sown for the use of about two-thirds of the population of this country. Of course the statistics for the quantity carried by other means are not available. However, the figures and other facts prove that the production of the drug is very limited. For instance, in Hyderabad City and cantonment there are no more than 46 shops, and in the whole dominions only 270 shops of ganja and bhang ; 28 shops of majum are at present in Hyderabad, and about 50 shops of the same are in all districts.

Some of the majum shops in the districts are temporary ; they make and sell majum only in Moharrum, Holi, and such other festivals.
The revenue derived in the city of Hyderabad for last five years stand thus :—

The above statement is exclusive of the monopoly given by the Sarfkhas, Paigha, and Jagirs, for which no statistics are available. The Government revenue from the custom duties on the import and ,export of ganja and bhang for the last five years has been as follows :—

The sale of the drugs in the towns visited by me for the purpose is ascertained thus :—
Ganja.    Bbang.
Hyderabad, per day    •••    •••    •••    11 maunds.    20 to 40 seers.
Raichnr    •..    •••    ... I. to 2 seers.    i a seer.
Gulbarga    ..•    ••• 10 to 15 seers.
Aurangabad    ..•    •••    ...    2 to 3    „    About 1 seer.

For further details vide my answer to the printed question forwarded on the 12th of November 1893.

M. HOSSAIN,
Director of Agriculture and Commerce, Nizam's Dominions.