Cannabis in 19th Century India: The Baluchistan Province

Based on the Indian Hemp Drugs Commission's report of 1894-95, this article includes: 

• My overview of cannabis usage in the Baluchistan Province of 1894-95
• The Indian Hemp Drugs Commission's findings regarding Baluchistan 
• Memorandum on hemp drugs in Baluchistan (Quetta-Pishin), by Major G. Gaisford, the Political Agent and Deputy Commissioner, Quetta-Pishin
• Questions by the Hemp Commission to witnesses
• List of Baluchistan witnesses who deposed before the Hemp Commission
• Individual witness statements of the witnesses from Baluchistan.

Overview

(Image sourse: Wikipedia)

Baluchistan in the 19th century had the following districts - Quetta, Pishin, Chaman, Kalat, Bolan, Thal Chotiali... 

There appears to have been negligible cultivation of cannabis at the time of the Indian Hemp Drugs Commission's study in 1894-95, mostly restricted to Bolan and Quetta-Pishin. Information is scarce regarding cannabis in Baluchistan, barring the inputs provided by Major G. Gaisford, Political Agent and Deputy Commissioner, Quetta-Pishin, and a few other witnesses. The Deputy Commissioner states in his memorandum submitted to the Hemp Commission that he is awaiting reports from a number of his officers. Major Gaisford states in his evidence to the Commission that 'The cultivation of the hemp plant is carried out in Ahmed Khazai, in the Quetta sub-district, to a very inappreciable extent, for use as bhang.'

The Baluchis along with the Pathans were more consumers of charas than bhang or ganja. The proximity to Afghanistan meant that good quality charas was available in sufficient quantities for local needs. Ganja was a scarce commodity as the prices of these three forms of cannabis indicate - Re. 1 per ser for bhang, Rs. 20 per ser for charas, and Rs. 78 per ser for ganja - unlike in most parts of India where ganja was much cheaper than charas which was a scarce commodity as one moved further away from the north-western parts of India towards the east and south. Ganja appears to have been mainly imported from the Central Provinces, given that it was known locally as "pathar". Bhang appears to have been consumed by Hindus from north India. Major G. Gaisford, Political Agent and Deputy Commissioner, Quetta-Pishin, states that 'Among the Hindu sect called the Bam Bargis the consumption of bhang is regarded as essential.' Kazi Imamuddin, Extra Assistant Commissioner, Pishin, states that 'These drugs are generally used without any distinction of classes among the Sindhis and Purbias, as several Thakurs and Brahmins of these countries are seen in this habit. Several residents of Kandahar among Musalmans and Hindus are also in the habit of smoking charas.' The Hemp Commission reports that the consumption of cannabis appears to be decreasing and the reason attributed by the  Commission is that Indian soldiers, who were part of military operations by the British in Baluchistan had, in the recent past, been withdrawing in large numbers. Major G. Gaisford, Political Agent and Deputy Commissioner, Quetta-Pishin, states in his evidence that 'The use of ganja, charas and bhang seems to be on the decrease in this district. The country is becoming more settled, and the low class Indians, who were numerous during war time, have decreased in numbers.' Note the term "low class" used to denote the cannabis consumers, unlike the "high-class" British who consumed opium and western alcohol. This appears to be similar to the case of Burma where, too, the main consumption of cannabis had been attributed to soldiers from the Madras Presidency who served in Burma as part of British military deployment. Like in Burma, what appears unstated in Baluchistan is that the primary aim of the British colonists was to decrease the cultivation and use of cannabis so as to increase the cultivation of, and protect, their favorite drug - opium. Afghanistan and Burma had been nurtured for some time already by the British colonists, by the time of the Hemp Commission's study, to become the main cultivation areas for opium. The results are there today for all to see, with Burma (now Myanmar) and Afghanistan being the world's largest producers of illegal opium, along with India as the world's largest producer of legal opium to meet the needs of the British and the rest of Europe. Like his boss, Major Gaisford, Kazi Imamuddin also appears to have had a very low regard for cannabis consumers. He states that 'Only menial sects of Muhamadan and Hindu nations of the Punjab province eat or drink bhang, as it is considered a shameful event to see a lad of good family of this province and India too indulge in this habit and called a bhangi.' 

Like the saying goes 'Don't point your finger at someone, because four fingers are pointing back at you'. It is amusing to see that bhang-drinkers are considered "menial" by Kazi Imamuddin, whereas in India all the bhang drinking upper-castes and upper-classes of north India considered themselves superior for their cannabis eating and drinking as bhang, and those who smoked cannabis as ganja as despicable low-castes, prostitutes and low-class people. Further showing the amusing nature of this discrimination against those who consumed cannabis differently from people of one's culture, we saw in Coorg where bhang-drinking was associated with prostitutes, whereas in north India ganja-smoking was associated with prostitutes. All these biases among the people who consumed cannabis themselves were effectively leveraged by the British to prohibit cannabis itself almost entirely, like the proverbial monkey who got the cake while pretending to settle the dispute between two fighting cats. 

We see an intoxicating drink prepared from dhatura, alcohol, bhang and opium called 'mudra' being consumed in Baluchistan. Such a potent mix of intoxicants would have rendered the consumer insane. Ignorant observers and prohibitionists - like the Band of Hope, Baluchistan - who were seeking their absurd prohibition of all intoxicants appear to have narrowed down on cannabis to direct their spite, completely ignoring the much more potent and dangerous other ingredients that went into the drink - dhatura, alcohol and opium. This, again, is a standard stupidity of most prohibitionists everywhere, where they fail to identify the key drugs that cause the most damage to public health and bay for the restriction of the one drug, cannabis, that can prevent the abuse of all these dangerous drugs. The malicious and unscrupulous businessmen and administration - who care a hoot for public health and would rather sell these more dangerous drugs in order to accrue more revenue - readily amplify the propaganda of the imbecile prohibitionists and get cannabis prohibited while promoting alcohol, opium and tobacco. Speaking about the recent increase in alcohol consumption, Bhugwan Dass, Khattri, Hospital Assistant, Quetta, says 'Yes; the alcohol is very commonly used, the drunkards are daily found by the road sides. The alcohol being used by Europeans, whose example is naturally followed by the natives, and it is a stronger and diffusible drink, much easier to obtain than formerly; the use of alcohol is considered no more a sin at present;' He further says 'It [ganja and charas] is much less injurious than alcohol and inexpensive. The alcohol first of all to be stopped, which is very excessively used than formerly. The ganja and charas comes next to alcohol; besides the smoker of charas and ganja does not commit a crime as a drunkard does; alcohol deranges the whole organs and is a very expensive drink.'

The Excise Act XXII of 1881 regulated cannabis in Baluchistan as it did in the North Western Province, Punjab, Ajmere-Merwara and Coorg. The Excise Act XXII of 1881, and whatever excise rules preceded it in the few decades before that, ensured that cannabis was effectively strangulated and restricted to negligible amounts, in order to provide a free space for opium. According to this Act, cannabis could only be cultivated under license and had to be sold to a licensed contractor only. Like in other places where this Act was in place, the requirement for a license to cultivate would have ensured that most small farmers - who may have traditionally cultivated cannabis - had been forced to abandon this practice, leaving only one or two wealthy and influential zamindars. These zamindars appear to have formed a monopoly with the licensed contractor to stifle cannabis use. There appears to have been just one licensed contractor in Baluchistan, as in Coorg. The license was auctioned on an annual basis to the highest bidder who could then set up retail outlets in various places, staffed by his own workers. The contractor could import cannabis from other places and sell them in his retail outlets. He was free to fix the retail price thus making vast profits. The main revenue for the state appears to have been from the auction of the license to vend. The maximum amount allowed for retail sales to an individual was bhang - 1/4 seer, charas and ganja - 5 tolas.

Today, Baluchistan is a district of Pakistan. After wreaking all the havoc in India and splitting it into India and Pakistan, and after creating opium production centers in Afghanistan and Burma, the British left, with Baluchistan becoming a part of Pakistan. The military in Pakistan, who are essentially the watch-dogs for Britain, and now the US, protect the opium trade that flows from Afghanistan eastwards and westwards. The Indian administration, who are also constantly vying with Pakistan to be the favored watch-dogs of the US, UK and Russia for opium, appear to be fueling separatist movements in Baluchistan in order to get a better foothold in the opium trade from Afghanistan, much like the Pakistan administration fuels separatist movements in Kashmir in order to secure better control over the flow of opium between India and Afghanistan. The people of Baluchistan have long forgotten their cannabis - which holds the key to weaning them away from the oppression by the administration and from opium, alcohol and now, methamphetamine that the people of Afghanistan have managed to get themselves into following the example of the US soldiers who occupied them for decades.

The Indian Hemp Drugs Commission's findings

THE EXISTENCE, PREVALENCE, AND CHARACTER OF THE SPONTANEOUS GROWTH

Quetta - Pishin

72. No wild or spontaneous growth is reported from any part of Baluchistan. The witnesses do not know of its existence.

EXTENT OF CULTIVATION, AND ITS TENDENCY TO INCREASE OR DECREASE.

Baluchistan. 

135. The Political Agent and Deputy Commissioner of Quetta and Pishin reports that the hemp plant is cultivated to a very small extent in one or two villages of the Quetta Subdivision, and that the produce, which is sold to the contractor, amounted last year to 12 sérs. In his evidence the Deputy Commissioner mentions the cultivating village Ahmed Khanzai. The small quantity of the drug produced would seem to indicate that it is charas. The Political Agent, Kalat, states that the plant is not cultivated on land under the administration of the Political Agent, and that an insignificant amount is grown in the territory of the Khan of Kalat. These facts are corroborated by one witness.

METHODS OF CULTIVATION AND MATTERS CONNECTED THEREWITH.

210. There is no information from Baluchistan.

PREPARATION OF THE RAW DRUGS FROM THE CULTIVATED AND WILD PLANT

264. There is no information from Baluchistan.

TRADE AND MOVEMENT OF THE HEMP DRUGS

Baluchistan.

326. The information from Baluchistan does not enable the Commission to judge of the extent of the trade in the province. The farms in two divisions — Bolan and Quetta-Pishin — fetch over Rs. 4,000 each; but it is not clear that these do not include the right to sell other intoxicating drugs besides the hemp products. There is practically no local production of the drugs. It would appear that the consumption of bhang and ganja are about equal, and that of charas is twelve times as great as either.

EXTENT OF USE AND THE MANNER AND FORMS IN WHICH THE HEMP DRUGS ARE CONSUMED

Baluchistan.

405. There is no information of the quantity of hemp drugs consumed in any part of Baluchistan. Bhang and ganja appear to come from India, and charas and chur ganja from Afghanistan as well as India. The Deputy Commissioner of Thal Chotiali reports that the Baluchis and Pathans of that district are not addicted to the drugs; but there is information from other quarters that the Baluchis and Pathans generally do smoke. The drinking of bhang would appear to be confined to Pathans and Indians. It is said that the consumption of the drugs is decreasing as the Indian population, which was larger when military operations were going on, is being reduced. The average price seems to be Re. 1 for bhang, Rs. 20 for charas, and Rs. 78 for ganja per ser.

Use of hemp drugs with alcohol.

425. In Baluchistan there is also said to be a drink called mudra, which is compounded of dhatura, bhang, alcohol and opium.

SOCIAL AND RELIGIOUS CUSTOMS

447. Major Gaisford, Deputy Commissioner, states that among the Hindu sect called Bam Bargis the consumption of bhang is regarded as essential.

EXISTING SYSTEMS DESCRIBED

Ajmere, Coorg, and QuettaPishin.

631. In these three small administrations Act XXII of 1881 is in force. There is a little cultivation in Ajmere, but none in Coorg or Quetta-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.

Memorandum on hemp drugs in Baluchistan (Quetta-Pishin), by the Political Agent and Deputy Commissioner, Quetta-Pishin

No. 7432, dated the 30th December 1893. 

From—The Political Agent and Deputy Commissioner, Quetta-Pishin, 

To—The Agent to the Governor-General and Chief Commissioner in Baluchistan. 

I have the honour to acknowledge the receipt of your office endorsement No. 6286, dated the 17th ultimo, forwarding a copy of the correspondence from the Secretary, Indian Hemp Drugs Commission. 

2. In reply I beg to report that the only social body which seemed likely to take an interest in the matter appeared to me the " Band of Hope, Baluchistan," Quetta. It is comprised of men of almost all religious denominations, and the object is the total abstinence from all intoxicating drugs and drinks. A copy of the questions set forth by the Commission, together with a copy of the correspondence, was sent to the Secretary, who has written to say that "the society is not in a position to answer the questions." 

3. The questions were sent to the Assistant Political Agent, Quetta, the Extra Assistant Commissioner, Pishin, and the Native Assistant, Chaman. The replies furnished by the Extra Assistant Commissioner, Pishin, is marked A. The other two officers have not answered any of the questions. 

4. The questions set forth for "medical evidence" were forwarded to the following officers:— 

(1) Principal Medical Officer, Quetta 1 copy. 

(2) Agency Surgeon, for Civil Surgeon, Quetta, Hospital Assistant, Quetta, Pishin, and Chaman 4 copies. 

They were requested to furnish the replies by the 15th instant, but no answer has yet been received. Their replies will be submitted to you immediately they are received in this office. 

5. I have recorded my own replies to the questions, which are marked B. 

6. A statement was attached to the Secretary's letter No. 28, dated the 11th August 1893, which requires information from 1873-74 to 1892-93. The Quetta-Pishin district was formed only in 1883, but I regret that the figures are not available for more than three years. These, too, as far as the number of retail licenses goes, are not very accurate, the information having been obtained from the contractors. 

The contractors cannot furnish the quantities imported each year, nor the amount of each drug sold. One contract is given for intoxicating drugs, and the revenue derived from bhang, ganja, and charas respectively cannot be ascertained. From the statistics obtained for the first six months, April to September, of the current financial year, it appears that proportion of sales of the three articles is approximately as under:— 

Bhang 1 Charas 12 Ganja 1 Total 14 

7. The sale of these drugs is now regulated by the rules framed by the Revenue Commissioner on the 14th July 1893, which are embodied (vide pages 21, 22, 25, and 26) in a memorandum on the excise system of this district, a copy of which is enclosed, marked D. 

8. In the third paragraph of his letter No. 28, dated the 11th August 1893, the Secretary has asked that a memorandum should be prepared setting forth clearly and fully the system of administration at present in force in respect to these drugs. To this letter a note is added containing the points in regard to which the Commission specially desire information. I beg to record below the information as far as this district is concerned:— 

(a) The system is uniform in the district. The general control rests with the Deputy Commissioner. The administration of the system, which is based on Act XXII of 1881 and the rules made thereunder by the Revenue Commissioner, is carried out by the Assistant Political Agent at Quetta, the Extra Assistant Commissioner at Pishin, and the Native Assistant at Chaman. 

(b) Wild hemp is not found in this district. 

(c) Hemp is cultivated to a very small extent in one or two villages of the Quetta subdivision. The produce is sold to the Government contractor. The hemp produced during the last year, 1892-93, did not amount to more than some twelve seers. 

(d) The contractors who obtain annually the right to sell the drugs by retail import the drugs. Permits are issued to them to enable them to import drugs from Sindh and the Punjab. No special measures are adopted to supervise the storing and transport of these drugs. 

(e) The system of licensing the retail vend is given in the rules referred to in the 6th paragraph of this letter. 

(f) The right to sell the drugs is sold annually by public auction. The amount thus fixed is recovered by monthly instalments. 

(g) There is no "local option." The number of shops is fixed by the Deputy Commissioner. Shops are generally allowed in thickly populated parts of the town. 

(h) No rate is fixed at which the drugs must be sold. The contractor fixes his own prices. The present retail prices of the drugs are the following:— Bhang Re. 1 per seer. Charas Rs. 20 per seer or 4 annas a tola. Ganja " 7.8 per seer or Re. 0-1.6 a tola. 

(i) The maximum amount fixed for retail sale of each drug is the following:— 

Bhang 1/4 seer. Charas 5 tolas. Ganja 5 "

(j) No cases of smuggling from other provinces or Native States have come to my notice. 

(k) No modifications of the present excise system in respect to hemp drugs are under consideration. 

Questions by the Hemp Commission to witnesses

List of Baluchistan witnesses who deposed before the Hemp Commission

Individual witness statements of the witnesses from Baluchistan

Cannabis in 19th Century India: The Coorg Province

Based on the Indian Hemp Drugs Commission's report of 1894-95, this article includes: 

• My overview of cannabis usage in the Coorg Province of 1894-95
• The Indian Hemp Drugs Commission's findings regarding Coorg 
• The Coorg Memorandum submitted to the Commission by  Mr. G. F. Meiklejohn, Commissioner of Coorg
• Questions by the Hemp Commission to witnesses
• List of Coorg witnesses who deposed before the Hemp Commission
• Individual witness statements of the witnesses from Coorg.

Overview

(Image source: Wikipedia)

The British province of Coorg coincides more or less with the district of modern Kodagu in Karnataka. Coorg was annexed by the British in 1834. At the time of the Indian Hemp Drugs Commission's study of 1894-95, Karnataka did not exist, the native state of Mysore did instead. It was only later that Kodagu became a part of the Mysore state. The Kodavas, the main warrior community of Coorg were, and still are, nature-worshippers, much like the other indigenous communities of this region, the Yeravas, Kurubs, Kapalas mentioned by the Hemp Commission and the Palayars and Karaters mentioned by a witness. All these indigenous tribes and communities appear to have lived in Coorg for thousands of years, possibly from the time that the Dravidian populations migrated to the south. There are accounts of Kodava connections with the Scythians.

Coffee, which was brought from Arabia to India by the Muslim fakir, Baba Budan, found its home in Chikmagaluru and the Coorg districts. The arrival of coffee, and the subsequent arrival of the British, appears to have changed what was once a classless and casteless society into a class and caste-based one. The economic upliftment of some communities, especially the Kodavas, appears to have relegated the other communities to lower castes and classes. It would be no surprise if the British played an active part in this. The British brought in more organized scientific cultivation of coffee, besides western alcohol and, most likely, their own favorite drug, opium. The Kodavas appear to have developed a close liking for western alcohol, along with a liking for the British, after resisting them for many years. It is very probable that the Kodavas too were cannabis communities earlier. The need for survival seems to have forced the non-Kodava indigenous tribes to seek employment in the newly developed plantations, for want of other means of livelihood.

The main homestead cultivation of cannabis in 19th century Coorg was practiced by the non-Kodava indigenous tribes - the Yeravas, Kurubs, Kapilas - who worked in the plantations. The Hemp Commission reports that 'The spontaneous growth that springs up near the huts of coolies and wild tribes, the Yeravas and Kurubs, is sometimes fostered and tended.' A. Bopanna, Planter, Bepunaad, Green Hills, Coorg, one of the two Coorgi witnesses who deposed before the Hemp Commission, says, 'Wild tribes such as Palayars, Kapalas, Karaters, fakirs and bairagis and Malabar coolies and Muhammedans. Individuals of the Eraver class smoke ganja; but it is quite common among the other classes mentioned by me.' Mr. G. F. Meiklejohn, Commissioner of Coorg says 'Kurumbaars, the wild tribe most addicted to it, are a peculiarly inoffensive non-criminal tribe: the Yerwars and Kapilas, who also smoke ganja, are more troublesome, though not by any means habitual criminals.'

In addition to completely disrupting the lives of the other indigenous communities, the planters also sought to directly interfere with the cannabis culture of these tribes. The tribes lived in fear of the wealthy planters and had to grow their cannabis surreptitiously. The Hemp Commission reports that, according to the Commissioner of Coorg, '"A coolie in weeding the coffee will try to avoid pulling up the plant unless his master happens to be looking."' The fear of prosecution appears to have forced these communities to resort to cultivating their precious plants discretely. The Commission reports that 'It is reported that there have been eight prosecutions for illicit cultivation in the last two years.' The fear of prosecution for cultivation was so large that even though cultivation was permitted under license in the Coorg province, nobody used this means to cultivate cannabis openly. This should not come as a surprise for the following reasons: (1) The main consumers and, hence, the cultivators would have been the indigenous communities (2) To procure the license they would have had to approach the Collector or Parpattegar (3) It is most likely that the fear of prosecution was so great that the indigenous tribes would have been reluctant to cultivate even under license, surely based of past experience at the hands of the law and the planters. Mr. G. F. Meiklejohn, Commissioner of Coorg, states in his memorandum submitted to the Hemp Commission that 'No ryot or other person is allowed to cultivate hemp without a license from the Parpattegar; the Excise and village officers would report any such case. There have been a few prosecutions of people for growing a few plants of hemp near their huts in the last two or three years. This has checked the practice somewhat.'

The same Excise Act XXII of 1881 that regulated cannabis in Punjab, the North Western Provinces, British Burma and Ajmere-Merwara regulated cannabis in Coorg. We see repeated statements by the Hemp Commission that there is no restriction on cannabis cultivation in Coorg and other places regulated by the Excise Act XXII of 1881. Often, the Commission seems to wonder why, despite this, cultivation has been decreasing rapidly in the past few decades. One wonders whether the Commission is really this naive or just playing dumb. According to the Excise Act XXII of 1881, a farmer can cultivate cannabis under license. There is no fee for this license. But the license must be procured from the Collector or Parpattegar of the district in Coorg. Imagine an uneducated tribal from one of the indigenous communities - regarded by the ruling administration and the upper classes and upper castes as a low caste person to be shunned and despised - approaching the Collector to request him for a license. The foremost fear in the mind of this indigenous person would have been that he would be put behind bars if he sought to do so. Undoubtedly, there would have been a number of instances where such a thing would have happened. So, almost all the small farmers and poor individuals who cultivated the majority of cannabis in Coorg, and the rest of India, would have been discouraged at this point itself from openly cultivating cannabis. The few persons who would have procured licenses to cultivate cannabis according to this Act would have been large farmers and influential persons belonging to the upper classes and upper castes who were friendly with the Collector. Then there is the rule that the cultivator can sell his cannabis only to the licensed contractor. In Coorg, the licensed contractor procures his license through submitting a tender based on which he get a lease for three years. Again, obviously, the most influential and wealthy person belonging to the upper classes and castes would have been the only one who would have been able to procure this license to vend. There were usually only one or two contractors for an entire British-controlled province. Coorg, being a small province, had one. This contractor would set up the retail outlets throughout the province, staffed by his own workers, where retail sales of cannabis could happen. Picture a poor small farmer traveling great distances to meet this contractor and trying to sell his produce to the contractor. The sale was entirely dependent on the whims and fancies of the contractor. If the contractor had enough stock he would refuse to buy the crop. Even if he decided to purchase the crop, he would quote a price that was so low that the farmer would have incurred great losses. The poor farmer would have had no choice but to sell his produce at whatever price the contractor quoted because otherwise his crop would go to waste. The contractor would, of course, sell the cannabis at prices that were far greater than the procurement price, making vast profits in the process. Caught between the rule of license for cultivation and the rule that the crop could only be sold to a licensed contractor, the poor small farmer would have torn out his hair in despair and decided that he was better off cultivating some other crop, rather than cannabis. Many of these poor farmers would probably have been pushed to work as bonded labour for the large farmers or even the contractor himself. With all this, when we see the Hemp Commission and various members of the administration stating that there has a considerable decrease in cannabis cultivation despite there being no restrictions to it, what else can one do but tear one's own hair out or laugh at these clowns? These actions were deliberately put in place to kill Coorg's, and India's, cannabis culture so that the wishes of the British Empire to eventually completely prohibit cannabis in India could be fulfilled. 

The Excise team in Coorg was small, given that it was a small province. But it appears that this small team was sufficient to ensure that the cannabis culture in this province was as tightly regulated and kept to a minimum as it was in the Ajmere-Merwara province. No doubt the police, judiciary and the powerful planters and licensed contractor along with their coterie of informants served as an extended team. In the Memorandum on hemp drugs in Coorg submitted  to the Hemp Commission by Mr. G. F. Meiklejohn, Commissioner of Coorg, he says that the Commissioner of Coorg, i.e., he himself, is the head of Excise. Besides him there were two Inspectors of Excise and six other officials. We can see that the contractor and planters worked in conjunction with the Commissioner to stamp out any homestead cultivation from the Commissioner's statement in his memorandum, where he says regarding the extent of homestead cultivation that 'Impossible to say with any degree of accuracy, but as the contractor has not complained, and I have had no complaints from planters as to their coolies being stupefied by the drug, probably to a very limited extent indeed.' Regarding any attempt by a small-scale cultivator to bypass the excise rules and sell cannabis directly to consumers, Mr. G. F. Meiklejohn says 'If its sale was attempted to any extent, it would come to the ears of the licensed vendor, and the seller would be prosecuted, but I have heard of no such cases.'  Regarding the selling of cannabis through any unlicensed shops, he says 'No special precautions against evasions are taken; the vendors who have licensed shops, even if any unlicensed shops escaped the notice of the officials, would at once bring the matter to the notice of the Excise Department.'  It was in the best interest of the contractor to ensure that no one tried to violate the system. Regarding the revenue through taxes on cannabis, Mr. G. F. Meiklejohn says 'Besides the contract amount a fee of one rupee per mensem for each shop at Mercara and Virajendrapett, and of annas 8 in other places is paid.' The daily limit on sale to an individual from the retail outlet was 1/4 ser for ganja and 5 tolas for majum. There was a total of seven retail outlets run by the single contractor in the Coorg Province. The Commissioner says 'One shop has been allowed to each of the 6 taluks or sub-divisions of Coorg except to the Nanjarajpatana Taluk, in which there are two, one at head-quarters and one in the municipal town of Somvarpett.' 

Since there was almost no local cultivation of cannabis, officially at least, the needs of the Coorg Province were met by import of ganja from the Madras Presidency. This was a trifling amount. The Hemp Commission reports that 'The average import of ganja from the figures of two years is 74 maunds of 28 lbs. each, or 21 Indian maunds. The average of registered consumption is two-thirds of this amount. The drug imported would seem to be grown in the Madras Presidency.' Based on this small volume of import and using various calculations, the Hemp Commission came to the conclusion that 0.5 to 0.6 per cent of the population, i.e., about 1000 people from a total population of 173,000 were cannabis consumers. We can see here the gross error in estimation. The 1000 people that the Hemp Commission estimated would have most likely been persons from the upper classes and castes who purchased ganja from the retail outlets run by the contractor, and possibly a few persons from the indigenous communities that were able to afford the retail price. It is most likely, that the majority of the indigenous communities continued to get their ganja from the homestead growing that they would have practiced in hiding in the coffee and cardamom estates and in the surrounding forest areas. What this estimation shows is how the Hemp Commission made gross errors in arriving at their numbers of cannabis consumers, not just in Coorg, but across the whole of India. Almost everywhere, the Hemp Commission reports similar figures of less than 1 per cent of the population being cannabis consumers. Everywhere the Hemp Commission arrived at these figures based on the annual retail sales divided by their estimated average consumption per person. We can see a number of flaws with this estimation namely: (1) The Commission itself reports that record-keeping was very poor in the retail outlets. (2) Most retail outlets sold both ganja and opium and separate accounts were not maintained for each (3) Most estimates also relied on import figures from Excise reports that did not account for the illegal smuggling of the herb into the province (4) The vast majority of the main cannabis consumer demographics - the indigenous communities, the religious mendicants and the labouring classes - either grew their own cannabis in hiding or possibly obtained it from illegal sources at prices that were affordable. We have seen numerous witnesses across India reporting figures that range for 50 percent to 90 percent for the number of cannabis consumers among the religious mendicants and the labouring classes. Yet, when the Commission arrives at estimates, these estimates show figures like 0.5 per cent, etc. These figures estimated by the Hemp Commission are possibly more accurate for the number of upper classes and upper castes that purchased cannabis from the retail outlets and consumed it, completely ignoring the communities that made up the majority of the country's population. Obviously, under-reporting the percentage of the population that consumed cannabis had great benefit for the Hemp Commission and the ruling administration. It erroneously showed that cannabis consumers were a miniscule part of the country's population and, hence, prohibiting it or regulating it would affect only a small fraction of India's people, whose discontent was not something that the administration need worry about.

What is even more laughable is that the Hemp Commission says that the retail prices of cannabis in Coorg, as well as the Madras Presidency from which it is imported, is too low. The Commission recommends that along with raising the retail price of cannabis in the Madras Presidency, the retail price in Coorg must also be raised. Such an action would have resulted in even the 0.5 to 0.6 percent of the population being retail purchasers of cannabis dropping to zero, much to the delight of the Commission and the administration. The influential planters also supported this move of raising the retail prices of cannabis. Showing the thinking of the upper caste and upper class planters of Coorg - that the oppression of the lower castes, working classes and the poor was not sufficient yet - A. Bopanna, Planter, Bepunaad, Green Hills, Coorg, says, 'I think taxation of these drugs would be reasonable if the tax is levied, and that a heavy one. It would not only tend to prevent excessive use of these drugs, but will also prevent several of the poor people from having recourse to it.' Mirroring the thoughts of his fellow witness, that further oppression of the poorest sections of society is a good idea, Mukkati Iyappa, Cultivator, Davanagiri, Coorg, says 'If the cultivation of hemp is prohibited, the habit can be easily checked. The number addicted to smoke ganja being very small, there will be no danger of any kind to anybody. Only poorer classes who cannot afford to buy alcoholic stimulants smoke ganja, and they are not likely to get into other habits.' 

As a result of the Hemp Commission's report, the cannabis plant became two drugs. The terms 'ganja' and 'bhang', that refer to the cannabis plant by two names based on the linguistic roots of the people who use these terms, strangely became the basis of discrimination of the lower castes and classes by the upper classes and castes. The upper-castes and upper-classes of north India, with their linguistic roots in the Aryan languages refer to cannabis as 'bhang' while the people of south India, with their linguistic roots in the Dravidian languages refer to cannabis as 'ganja'. The people who use the term 'bhang' for cannabis prefer to drink it as a beverage, while the people who use the term 'ganja' prefer to smoke cannabis. Throughout the Hemp Commission's report, we see the upper-castes and upper-classes of north India denigrating the ganja-smokers as the lowest castes, classes, prostitutes and criminals. The confusion was further amplified by a botanist from the Calcutta Herbarium, Dr. Prain, who gave the definition for 'bhang' as the leaves of the cannabis plant and 'ganja' for the flowers of the cannabis plant. Most ignorant witnesses who had not consumed cannabis ever in their lives agreed with this definition. But as the Hemp Commission's report shows in various places, the beverage bhang contained the flowers of cannabis as well as the leaves. In the Canarese-speaking parts of south India, ganja was, and still is, called 'bhangi'.  A. Bopanna, Planter, Bepunaad, Green Hills, Coorg, says ganja is known by two names 'Jaday bhangi and phoo bhangi.'  Mukkati Iyappa, Cultivator, Davanagiri, Coorg, says 'Ganja is known as Jade-bhangi, and bhang is known as Hoovo-bhangi.' Hoovu-bhangi means flower bhangi. This further throws a spanner in the works of those who claim that ganja and bhang are two separate drugs, including Dr. Prain, whose definition of ganja and bhang caused the schism that divides not just the cannabis plant, but also north and south India, with the error being carried forward to this date, calcified in the NDPS Act of 1985 that governs cannabis prohibition in India where bhang is legal but ganja is illegal.  

It might make the Vaishnavite and Vedic upper castes of right-wing Hinduism squirm to know that the hated Muslims drank cannabis in Coorg during Muharram and called it 'ramras'. A. Bopanna, Planter, Bepunaad, Green Hills, Coorg, says 'I hear low class Muhammedans drink bhangi, called in Canarese "ramras," in the time of Muharram.' It would also make these upper castes of north India - who attributed their own bhang drinking as indicative of their superior culture, and ganja smoking as indicative of the despicable ways of the lower castes and prostitutes - squirm to hear that prostitutes in Coorg drank the subji or ramras. A. Bopanna, Planter, Bepunaad, Green Hills, Coorg, says 'I hear the subji or ramras is used by prostitutes.' 

Speaking about the use of cannabis in cooking, A. Bopanna, Planter, Bepunaad, Green Hills, Coorg, says 'I also hear that mutton, after it is well boiled, is mixed up with bhangi, condiments, spices, dried cocoanut and kuskus, and is roasted in ghee. It is eaten with bread, particularly by Muhammedans. This preparation is called "bhangi dhallianha."

Coorg today is one of the most sought-after hill-stations in south India, nestled in the Western Ghats, with breathtaking vistas that draw people from all over the world and India. It drew the British who decided to make it one of their territories in 19th century India. Coorg accounts for a majority of the coffee production in India, with mostly the Arabica variety of coffee being grown. Besides coffee, Coorg is renown for its spices, especially black pepper and cardamon, and its honey. Wikipedia says that 'Kodagu is the largest coffee and pepper producing district in India. Karnataka produces nearly 70% of the total coffee production in India, out of which 33% is contributed by Kodagu district alone. Kodagu also produces nearly a quarter of India's black pepper.'

There are distinct caste and class divisions in Coorg, to this day, something that is clearly evident from the Hemp Commission's report. Like in all other parts of India, cannabis use was a key indicator of this class and caste distinction. Those who smoked cannabis as ganja - the indigenous communities and tribes - are considered the lowest castes and they make up the bulk of the labour in the coffee and spice plantations. The upper class and upper caste people of Coorg make up the majority of the plantation owners. The Kodavas, the warrior community of Coorg, pride themselves as great warriors and sportspersons, especially in hockey. Some of India's most notable military leaders and hockey players are from Coorg. The Coorgi upper castes and upper classes also pride themselves in their consumption of alcohol, a trait that they share with their neighbours from Kerala down south. Like their neighbours down south, they also look down with scorn at the ganja-smokers, who are mostly from the indigenous communities, while they pride themselves for how much they have been able to ape the British colonists' alcohol imbibing behavior. The fact that the caste and class system of 19th century India is more or less very much intact in Coorg is obvious from an account given to me by a woodcutter I met in Kerala about three years back. He had spent some time working in a plantation in Coorg. He told me how, when the planter entered the workers living area in the morning to issue his orders for the day, all the workers were expected to remain in a squatting position and avoid looking into the eyes of the planter unless addressed by the planter.  

 

The Indian Hemp Drugs Commission's findings

THE EXISTENCE, PREVALENCE, AND CHARACTER OF THE SPONTANEOUS GROWTH

Coorg.

71. The Commissioner of Coorg is "doubtful whether wild hemp is actually found, but hemp springs up in the coffee gardens, near coolie lines, and near the huts of the wild tribes, and no one owns to its cultivation. A coolie in weeding the coffee will try to avoid pulling up the plant unless his master happens to be looking." The evidence of two witnesses describes a growth round about huts whose spontaneous character is doubtful, for it seems to be generally tended. A few chance plants may spring up of themselves in such places as are indicated above, but there is no wild growth of the dense character known in the north of India.

EXTENT OF CULTIVATION, AND ITS TENDENCY TO INCREASE OR DECREASE.

Coorg.

134. In Coorg cultivation is allowed under license, but no one undertakes it openly. The spontaneous growth that springs up near the huts of coolies and wild tribes, the Yeravas and Kurubs, is sometimes fostered and tended. From the account of cultivation given by witnesses (1) and (2), it would appear that the plant is sometimes sown deliberately, and treated with some care. The extent of the whole cultivation must, however, be very trifling. It is reported that there have been eight prosecutions for illicit cultivation in the last two years. 

METHODS OF CULTIVATION AND MATTERS CONNECTED THEREWITH.

Coorg.

209. In Coorg the methods of desultory homestead cultivation may be employed by some low class coolies. A witness talks of the seeds being "sown broadcast in rich soil mixed with burnt clay, and afterwards transplanted in good rich soil;" but it is not clear that this method is in vogue in Coorg. Some Madras witnesses gave information of the same kind.

PREPARATION OF THE RAW DRUGS FROM THE CULTIVATED AND WILD PLANT

Coorg.

263. From Coorg it is stated that the female plants are cut down and exposed to the sun for a day. They are then collected into bundles and exposed to the sun by day and dew by night for three days, after which they are wrapped up in coarse cloths or kamblis, and so preserved. It is to be remembered that the cultivation consists only of the surreptitious rearing of plants on a small scale.

TRADE AND MOVEMENT OF THE HEMP DRUGS

Coorg.

325. In Coorg there is practically no local production of the hemp drugs. The average import of ganja from the figures of two years is 74 maunds of 28 lbs. each, or 21 Indian maunds. The average of registered consumption is two-thirds of this amount. The drug imported would seem to be grown in the Madras Presidency. Charas is not used, nor is bhang regarded as a distinct article from ganja.

EXTENT OF USE AND THE MANNER AND FORMS IN WHICH THE HEMP DRUGS ARE CONSUMED

Coorg.

404. In Coorg the import of ganja amounts to 21 maunds and registered consumption to 14. The population is 173,055. The retail price is 14 annas to 1 rupee for a ser of 24 tolas, or approximately 2/3 anna per tola. Taking th minimum allowance at 1/4 tola or 1/6 anna per diem, the annual individual consumption comes to 90 tolas, and the cost is something less than Rs. 5. This is a reasonable allowance. The consumers would number about 1000, or between .5 and .6 per cent of the population. It is probable that the consumption tends to increase with the influx of coolies into the coffee and cardamom estates. 

EXISTING SYSTEMS DESCRIBED

Ajmere, Coorg, and QuettaPishin.

631. In these three small administrations Act XXII of 1881 is in force. There is a little cultivation in Ajmere, but none in Coorg or Quetta-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.

PROVINCIAL SYSTEMS EXAMINED

673. In Coorg the price of ganja is very low owing to the facility of obtaining a supply from the Madras Presidency. When the system of the latter is revised, care should be taken that similar restrictions in Coorg are not wanting.

Memorandum on hemp drugs in Coorg, by Mr. G. F. Meiklejohn, Commissioner of Coorg

The answers refer to ganja, which is called indifferently in Coorg, ganja or bhang. Charas is unknown. 

Only one system in the small province of Coorg. 

The Commissioner of the province is head of the Excise. 

Two Inspectors of Excise and six other officials under the Commissioner. 

On Act No. XXII of 1881, an Act to amend the law relating to Excise Revenue in Northern India, British Burma, and Coorg. On the rules framed in conformity with sections 11, 12, 20, and 55 of that Act, sanctioned by the Chief Commissioner of Coorg as the chief revenue authority in the province, having effect from 19th May 1882. 

I am doubtful whether wild hemp is actually found, but hemp springs up in the coffee near cooly lines and near the huts of the wild tribes and no one owns to its cultivation. A cooly in weeding the coffee will try to avoid pulling up the plant unless his master happens to be looking. 

Impossible to say with any degree of accuracy, but as the contractor has not complained, and I have had no complaints from planters as to their coolies being stupefied by the drug, probably to a very limited extent indeed. 

No attempt has been made to control the possession of such drug. If its sale was attempted to any extent, it would come to the ears of the licensed vendor, and the seller would be prosecuted, but I have heard of no such cases. 

Cultivation not prohibited, but a license must be taken out first. As a matter of a fact, however, hemp is not cultivated in the province. 

To none, if a license is asked and given, but, as already stated, the plant is not cultivated in Coorg. 

No ryot or other person is allowed to cultivate hemp without a license from the Parpattegar; the Excise and village officers would report any such case. There have been a few prosecutions of people for growing a few plants of hemp near their huts in the last two or three years. This has checked the practice somewhat. 

Only one-the contractor. 

If a ryot did cultivate for export, he would have to obtain a special pass under rule 33, but no such case has occurred. The contractor, being the sole importer, makes his own arrangements for the import, storing, and transport of the drug. For the import a license is required. 

Licenses are granted by the farmer, who is the wholesale vendor and has to keep accounts: the retail vendors are selected by the farmer, but must be approved by the Commissioner, who countersigns the licenses. They are visited by the Excise officers, accounts inspected, and fortnightly returns of results reported. License holders can sell for ready money only and not more than 1/4 of a seer of ganja and 5 tolas of majum. 

There is no tax on ganja and other hemp drugs. The right to procure and sell ganja is leased out for 3 years to the farmer whose tender has been approved of. If the contractor fails to pay on the appointed dates the instalments due, the contract is liable to be cancelled. Besides the contract amount a fee of one rupee per mensem for each shop at Mercara and Virajendrapett, and of annas 8 in other places is paid. 

No special precautions against evasions are taken; the vendors who have licensed shops, even if any unlicensed shops escaped the notice of the officials, would at once bring the matter to the notice of the Excise Department. 

One shop has been allowed to each of the 6 taluks or sub-divisions of Coorg except to the Nanjarajpatana Taluk, in which there are two, one at head-quarters and one in the municipal town of Somvarpett. No local option is recognized. At the same time the Commissioner would never sanction the opening of a shop unless the inhabitants either petitioned for it or were willing to have it. 

No, the contractor makes his own arrangements. 

He sells at from 10 to 12 annas a seer to the retail vendors, and they sell at from 14 annas to one rupee to the public. 

Yes, a vendor must not sell to any individual in one day more than 1/4 seer ganja and 5 tolas of majum except to the holder of a pass from a Magistrate. 

No minimum price is fixed for the drug. 

No smuggling from other provinces or from the Native State of Mysore has been brought to notice. There have been 8 prosecutions in the last two years for illicit cultivation, but they have been only small cases of a few plants found in compounds by the Excise officers. No special measures have had to be taken to prevent it. 

None. 

Is practically nil. (Extent of cultivation). 

Confined to the Government farmer. 

Amount of probable consumption.

41 1/2 maunds in 1891-92.  56 maundsin 1892-93. 

Rupees 798 per annum-Revenue. 

The Excise officers send in to the Commissioner a diary fortnightly as regards the ganja shops. 

The vice of ganja-smoking to excess is comparatively rare in the province. Kurumbaars, the wild tribe most addicted to it, are a peculiarly inoffensive non-criminal tribe: the Yerwars and Kapilas, who also smoke ganja, are more troublesome, though not by any means habitual criminals.

Questions by the Hemp Commission to witnesses

List of Coorg witnesses who deposed before the Hemp Commission

Individual witness statements of the witnesses from Coorg

Cannabis in 19th Century India: The Ajmere-Merwara Province

 Based on the Indian Hemp Drugs Commission's report of 1894-95, this article includes: 

• My overview of cannabis usage in the Ajmere-Merwara Province of 1894-95
• The Indian Hemp Drugs Commission's findings regarding Ajmere-Merwara 
• The Ajmere-Merwara Memorandum submitted to the Commission by the Assistant Commissioner and Collector of Excise Revenue
• Questions by the Hemp Commission to witnesses
• List of Ajmere-Merwara witnesses who deposed before the Hemp Commission
• Individual witness statements of the witnesses from Ajmere-Merwara.

Overview

(Image source: Wikipedia)

In the case of the Ajmere-Merwara province, it appears that by the time the study was carried out in 1894-95 by the Indian Hemp Drugs Commission, the cannabis culture in the province had been more or less well and truly snuffed out. The Ajmere-Merwara Province was regulated by the same Excise Act XXII of 1881 that regulated cannabis in the North Western Provinces and Punjab. The contractor was king, securing his monopoly of vend through auction, importing charas from Punjab and ganja from Gwalior, most probably, as stated by the Hemp Commission. The Assistant Commissioner and Collector of Excise revenue states, in his memorandum submitted to the Hemp Commission that 'The system in force in Ajmere-Merwara is shortly as follows. The contract for drugs is put up every year to auction, and it is sold to the highest bidder, provided that there is no objection to the man. The contractor maintains shops for the retail sale of drugs at places fixed by the Collector with reference to the requirements of the people. But very little hemp is cultivated in AjmereMerwara, although, subject to certain rules, the cultivation is not prohibited and but a small quantity grows wild. The hemp plants are sold to the contractor. Bhang and majum are the only preparations made locally, ganja and charas being imported from other provinces, usually from the Punjab. The retail shops are supervised by the preventive establishment, who also patrol the district and successfully prevent smuggling on any large scale.' G. Bennet, Abkari Inspector, Ajmere, says 'There has been a decrease within the last eight years. The drug contractor offers such a low rate for the bhang grown within the district.' He further says 'No restriction to cultivation, but that the produce must be sold to the Government Contractor.' At least in the Ajmere Province the cannabis contractor is referred to as 'contractor' unlike in other places where confusing terms such as 'licensed farmer' are used.

From what we see, the homestead growing of cannabis was limited to a few plants grown by malis or gardeners and sadhus or religious mendicants. I assume that the influential contractor working closely with the preventive establishment would have gradually eliminated all cannabis cultivation by farmers through spies and informers. 

The only notable cultivation of cannabis appears to be in the Pushkar region. This was consumed as the beverage bhang, primarily by the Brahmins of Pushkar, who were primarily the priests in charge of the Brahma Temple there. Myths such as ganja is consumed only by the lowest castes, prostitutes and outcasts, that ganja caused insanity, and that smoking cannabis as ganja was prohibited by the scriptures would most likely have been propagated by the upper castes and the British administration in the preceding decades to such effect that the reported cultivation and consumption of cannabis is quite low. 

The Brahma Temple in Pushkar is one of the few places in India where Brahma is worshipped. Brahma is the creator god of the Vedic and Vaishnavite trinity, besides Vishnu the preserver and Siva the destroyer. One of the interesting stories associated with Brahma is that he had five heads in the first place, four heads facing four directions and the fifth head facing upwards. The story goes that Brahma's arrogance caused Siva to cut off the head facing upwards, resulting in Brahma being left with only four heads. Since the beheading of a Brahmin is considered the most grievous of sins, the severed head of Brahma fastening itself to the palm of Siva's hand and he was fated to wander the universe with the skull in his hand till he was cleansed of the sin. Now, taken from a cultural perspective, this story reveals the conflict that arose when the caste-based Vedic and Vaishnavite societies came face to face with the casteless societies of the indigenous communities that inhabited India before their arrival. Siva was Mahadeva, the great god of the casteless societies. In order to arrive at a reconciliation between the two cultures, it appears that one head of Brahma had to be sacrificed and in doing so, Siva got demoted from great god and assimilated into the trinity to become an equal of Brahma and Vishnu. Siva, however, remained outside the caste system, i.e., he was an outcast whereas Brahma and Vishnu were Brahmins, the highest castes of the caste system of Vedic and Vaishnavite religions. From this point, it did not take long to gradually weaken the status of both Brahma and Siva until Vishnu reigned supreme, at least among the followers of the caste-based religions. However, a significantly large proportion of Indians still have their roots in the casteless cultures of Siva and nature worship. So, even though the worship of Brahma diminished greatly among the caste-based societies, the worship of Siva still remains strong among the descendants of the earlier casteless societies. Both caste-based and the earlier casteless societies today split their devotion between Vishnu and Siva. Since wealth and power are increasingly the greatest desire of most humans today, it can be said that Vishnu is worshipped more ardently than the outcast Siva who has no attachment to wealth or power. It appears that this is unfortunately not the case for Brahma. His worshippers have diminished after he lost the favor of the high priests of the caste-system who write the religious scriptures.

In parallel with the powerplay between the gods is the powerplay between those who drank cannabis as bhang and those who smoked cannabis as ganja. The ones who drank cannabis were the upper castes of the caste-based religions and the ones who smoked cannabis became the lowest castes and outcasts. Unfortunately, the upper-castes who sought to deride Siva and those who smoked cannabis did not factor in the British colonists who wanted to eliminate cannabis itself altogether. When the British saw how things were in India, they exploited the tension between the caste-based societies and the casteless societies to achieve their goal. They did this by first associating themselves with the upper castes and spreading the propaganda that those who smoked cannabis were not only the lowest castes and outcastes, they were the very dregs of society, criminal, insane and evil. They, along with the upper castes, even managed to portray bhang and ganja as two entirely different drugs. Seeing the opportunity to further repress the lower castes and outcastes, the Indian upper castes worked effectively with the British to almost entirely suppress the smoking of cannabis. They, however, only later understood, if at all, that the primary aim of the British colonists was to prohibit the cannabis plant entirely, when with the elimination of ganja there was no more bhang...

Today, we see in the state of Rajasthan - to which the Ajmere-Merwara Province belonged - that bhang has been legalized. Government-approved retail outlets sell cannabis as the beverage, bhang. But, if you are seen smoking the same cannabis, as ganja, then you will be treated exactly like the lowest castes and outcasts have been treated in the past. The British left, but the underlying conflict between the caste-based and casteless societies of India remains, mainly due to the ignorance of the upper castes of the Vedic and Vaishnavite religions who dominate the political, social, and cultural narratives in India. Opium has also been long associated with the people of Rajasthan, though the Hemp Commission does not speak much about it in its report. Opium, was and still is, after all the favored drug of the British colonists...

The Indian Hemp Drugs Commission's findings

THE EXISTENCE, PREVALENCE, AND CHARACTER OF THE SPONTANEOUS GROWTH

Ajmere-Merwara

70. There appears from the memorandum of the Commissioner, Ajmere-Merwara, to be no spontaneous growth of any importance - "Here and there a few plants grow spontaneously." The witnesses do not speak of any such growth. Plants that spring up in this way are up-rooted or made over to the contractor. There is evidently no dense growth of a wild character.

EXTENT OF CULTIVATION, AND ITS TENDENCY TO INCREASE OR DECREASE.

Ajmere

133. The memorandum from Ajmere reports an insignificant amount of cultivation for the production Of bhang. In 1886 the total area was reported to be 4 biswas. There is no restriction on cultivation, but it is only carried on by malis and Hindu ascetics, and the Brahmans of Pushkar. The District Superintendent of Police says that the produce has fallen to 40 maunds, and the Abkari Inspector also states that the cultivation is on the decrease. The extent of it would appear to depend a great deal on the character of the season.

METHODS OF CULTIVATION AND MATTERS CONNECTED THEREWITH.

Ajmere.

208. In Ajmere there is but a small amount of desultory cultivation by the Brahmins of Pushkar, malis, and sadhus. The plant may be occasionally tended with some care when it is grown in the garden of a mali or near the hut of a sadhu; but there is some evidence that it is generally allowed to take care of itself. Mr. White King's report of 1886 says: "Even in Pushkar, however, it is grown only in small quantities on the edges of fields and along the banks of water-channels," and this seems to be the most considerable cultivation in the province. This report does not indicate any great care in the cultivation. The produce, according to the same report, is merely bhang. The evidence does not furnish any details whatever of the method of cultivation.

PREPARATION OF THE RAW DRUGS FROM THE CULTIVATED AND WILD PLANT

Ajmere.

262. There is nothing to show that the plant in Ajmere is subjected to anything more than a process of drying to produce bhang.

TRADE AND MOVEMENT OF THE HEMP DRUGS

Ajmere.

324. The statistics of Ajmere give no figures of import, export, or retail sale. Very little of the hemp drugs is produced locally, and that only in the form of bhang. It is therefore safe to say there is no export. The Assistant Commissioner and Collector of Excise Revenue reports that ganja and charas are imported usually from the Punjab. This is probably true of charas, but the Punjab produces no ganja, and this drug must come from elsewhere, Gwalior being the most convenient, and therefore the most probable, source of supply.

EXTENT OF USE AND THE MANNER AND FORMS IN WHICH THE HEMP DRUGS ARE CONSUMED

Ajmere-Merwara

403. The reports and evidence from Ajmere-Merwara furnish no statistics to enable an estimate to be made of the extent of use of the hemp drugs. There was an increase of revenue in 1890-91 which was explained in the annual excise report to be due to competition at the auction of monopoly. There is no evidence of any increase or decrease of use.

SOCIAL AND RELIGIOUS CUSTOMS

446. At Holi and the Shivratri and at family festivities the drugs, especially bhang, are used.

PROVINCIAL SYSTEMS EXAMINED

Progress in Ajmere must depend upon co-operation with the British system in surrounding States. Ultimately it is probable that the system can be assimilated to that in force in the rest of British India.

Memorandum on hemp drugs in Ajmere-Merwara, by the Assistant Commissioner and Collector of Excise Revenue

With reference to your office endorsement No. 3330-R., dated the 26th September 1893, and in continuation of my letter No. 724, dated the 16th October 1893, regarding the collection of certain information required by the Indian Hemp Drugs Commission I have the honour to state as follows. 

2. As already reported in my letter quoted above, printed copies of the questions were sent to — 

(1) the District Superintendent of Police, 

(2) the Civil Surgeon, Ajmere, 

(3) the Revd. Dr. J. Husband, and 

(4) the Abkari Inspector. 

Answers from Nos. (1), (2), and (4) have been received and are herewith submitted. These answers will, I fear, generally not be of much assistance to the Commission. The fact is that, so far as I can ascertain, there is no one in Ajmere-Merwara who has made a study of the subject or who desires any alteration in the existing system. The Revd. Dr. J. Husband, who laid the questions before the Committee of the Ajmere Total Abstinence Association, informs me that the questions asked do not come within the scope of the operations of the society. 

3. The statement called for in paragraph 4 of Mr. McIntosh's circular No. 28 of 11th August 1893 has been filled in as far as possible and is herewith submitted. The only information available, which has been given in the statement in question, is the number of shops and the amounts realized by the sale of the contract of drugs for the past twenty years. 

I regret that I am unable to furnish the other information required to complete the statement in respect of import, export, and sale of drugs, as no such accounts have hitherto been kept, and the present and the former contractors are unable to furnish the required figures. 

The hemp plant is cultivated in Ajmere-Merwara to only an exceedingly limited extent, and here and there a few plants grow spontaneously. The total amount of hemp grown in these districts is insignificant. 

No license fees or fixed duty are levied in these districts: the revenue is derived by selling the monopoly of the sale of drugs. 

4. The points mooted in the memorandum referred to in paragraph 3 of Mr. McIntosh's circular of the 11th August 1893 are dealt with below: 

(1) Care is taken that the hemp plants are sold to the contractor. In the case of wild plants they are either destroyed or sold to the contractor. A copy of the rules regulating the cultivation, &c., of hemp is appended. 

(2) With the exception of bhang and majam, no hemp drugs are manufactured in these districts. Ganja and charas are imported from other districts, chiefly from the Punjab. 

(3) No duty is levied on the importation of any drugs - 

(a) The controlling authority is the Collector of Ajmere. There is one uniform system in Ajmere-Merwara, which is carried on under the Excise Act, XXII of 1881. 

(b) A few wild plants are found here and there, but not to any large extent. The possession and sale of these plants are regulated by the rules referred to above. The plants being so few, no difficulty is experienced in controlling their possession and sale. 

(c) The cultivation of the hemp plant is permitted under the rules already referred to. As a matter of fact, however, but very little hemp is cultivated, and that principally by malis and the Brahmins of Pushkar. 

(d) The sole importer of the drugs is the contractor, to whom a license for the exclusive right of the sale of the drugs is granted. The import is covered by rawannas from the authorities of the districts whence the drugs are exported. On arrival the consignments are weighed and checked with the rawannas by the Excise officers and the police

(e) There are no wholesale vendors here, and the contractor is the only person permitted to sell drugs by retail; he has his own shops in the district, which are under the supervision of the preventive staff: all shopkeepers employed by the contractor are supplied with 'nokarnamas' under the countersignature of the Collector. 

(f) The drugs contract is sold yearly to the highest bidder; no rates or other tax are fixed. In case of failure on the part of the contractor to pay the contract money, the contract is resold and the deficiency, if any, is recovered from the original purchaser. 

(g) As already stated the drug shops in the district belong to the contractor. Their number and sites are fixed by the Collector on application of the contractor with reference to the requirements of the people. 

(h) The contractor supplies the drugs to his shops in the district. The average retail prices (to consumers) are as follows:— 

The prices do not vary appreciably in the different parts of Ajmere-Merwara. 

(i) The maximum amount of drugs for sale and possession is bhang or any preparation or admixture thereof, one-quarter of a seer: ganja or charas or any preparation or admixture thereof, 5 tolas. 

(j) The average number of persons prosecuted during the past three years for smuggling drugs is nine. The preventive establishment patrol the district and check smuggling on any extensive scale satisfactorily. 

(k) No modifications of the present excise system in respect to hemp drugs are under consideration. 

(l) The required statement is annexed. Explanations in regard to it have been given in paragraph 3 of this letter. 

(m) The system in force in Ajmere-Merwara is shortly as follows. The contract for drugs is put up every year to auction, and it is sold to the highest bidder, provided that there is no objection to the man. The contractor maintains shops for the retail sale of drugs at places fixed by the Collector with reference to the requirements of the people. But very little hemp is cultivated in AjmereMerwara, although, subject to certain rules, the cultivation is not prohibited and but a small quantity grows wild. The hemp plants are sold to the contractor. Bhang and majum are the only preparations made locally, ganja and charas being imported from other provinces, usually from the Punjab. The retail shops are supervised by the preventive establishment, who also patrol the district and successfully prevent smuggling on any large scale. 

Questions by the Hemp Commission to witnesses

List of Ajmere-Merwara witnesses who deposed before the Hemp Commission

Individual witness statements of the witnesses from Ajmere-Merwara