Malana Cream

6 Reasons Why Cannabis Cultivation Should Be Legalised in Himachal Pradesh

Himachal Pradesh’s Kullu district is home to world’s best-quality cannabis, also known as marijuana among other names. It is also one of the largest producers of top-notch Hashish including the Malana Cream. Though illegal under the India law, cannabis is grown annually on thousands of hectares of land in the upper reaches of Kullu, Manali, Parvati valley and Banjar valley and is a source of livelihood to scores of villages.

While the local police department annually destroys cannabis fields besides making charas seizures almost every other week but it has failed to contain the drug trade and the crime associated with it. For drug cartels, it continues to be business as usual. With medical marijuana being accepted world over and legalised for the health benefits especially in the treatment of cancer, epilepsy, anxiety etc, the demand for making cannabis cultivation legal for medical use is getting stronger in Kullu too. Here are the top reasons why Kullu wants medical marijuana to be legalised.

1. It will help villages like Malana

There are number of villages like Malana in Kullu whose only source of income is the illegal cultivation of cannabis in the absence of farming alternatives. The villagers make a living by selling their produce to drug dealers. If cannabis is legalised, such villagers would get the license to cultivate cannabis and sell their crop to government agencies at fair prices rather than to drug peddlers at low rates as they do at present. Cannabis will become a cash crop to thousands of villagers.

2. Prohibition has failed

The local inhabitants have used cannabis for ages for recreational purposes and for making clothes, ropes and slippers etc from the fibre of the plant. Then came the ban on cannabis in the winters of 1985. But the prohibition completely failed, rather it backfired. In the 90’s as the demand grew for Hashish, so did the supply.

Drug cartels took over and cannabis cultivation got multiplied by hundreds of times. Every year, the local police department destroys cannabis in thousands of hectares of land but the production of Hashish has surged over the years. The police have also seized thousands of kilos of Hashish in the last over a decade but it’s just the tip of the iceberg. Making cannabis illegal has created a problem so huge only legalisation can solve it now.

3. Best cannabis

If you are looking for best quality marijuana then Kullu is the place to be. Actually, Hashish varieties like Malana Cream are considered to be the best in the world. So here we are. Legalising medical marijuana would mean best prices for the best product, not only in the national market but also in the international market.

4. It will boost the local economy

Legalising medical marijuana would spark off related industries in research and benefits and lead to the creation of jobs. In many states of the USA and European countries where medical marijuana is legal, local economies have benefitted. The economy here will also be bolstered due to legalisation. After all, Kullu and Himachal Pradesh are the biggest cultivators of best cannabis in the country.

5. It will end drug mafia

The prohibition has over the years created a drug mafia that has further resulted in a rise in criminal incidents in the Kullu valley, otherwise known for the peaceful existence of its residents. If cannabis is legalised and sold by the government agencies, who would go to a drug dealer? Medical marijuana would mean the beginning of the end of drug mafia in Kullu.

6. It will curb drug abuse

The ban on cannabis has not only created a drug mafia and a multi-crore illicit drug industry but also led to the arrival of dangerous drugs mainly opioids in the Kullu district. The drug abuse has become rampant in the valley due to the drug mafia. Legalising cannabis will reduce drug abuse here also as has happened in other countries where medical marijuana is legal.

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