Cannabis%20becomes%20a%20bigger%20deal%20than%20cocaine%20and%20heroin%20in%20India%3F

So%20much%20is%20being%20made%20out%20of%20the%20use%20of%20cannabis%20these%20days%20%u2013%20thanks%20to%20some%20of%20the%2024×7%20loud%20TV%20channels%20%u2013%20it%20seems%20that%20there%20is%20no%20harder%20drug%20than%20this%20on%20the%20surface%20of%20this%20earth.

%26nbsp%3BThe%20manner%20in%20which%20the%20Narcotics%20Control%20Bureau%20%28NCB%29%20has%20trained%20its%20guns%20against%20a%20select%20section%20of%20the%20high%20profile%20Bollywood%20celebs%20seems%20to%20convey%20that%20the%20biggest%20revelation%20for%20them%20is%20the%20use%20of%20cannabis.

NCB%20should%20be%20thanking%20Rhea%20Chakraborty%20and%20Sushant%20Singh%20Rajput%20for%20making%20the%20Indian%20narcotics%20watchdog%20suddenly%20realize%20the%20evil%20potential%20of%20this%20plant%2C%20which%20is%20the%20source%20of%20three%20major%20substances%20known%20in%20common%20Indian%20parlance%20as%20%u2018bhang%u2019%2C%20%u2018ganja%u2019%20and%20%u2018charas%u2019.

What%20is%20strange%20is%20that%20even%20as%20any%20man%20on%20the%20street%20has%20been%20familiar%20with%20these%20substances%2C%20only%20NCB%20needed%20a%20Rhea%20Chakraborty%20and%20Bollywood%20to%20fathom%20what%20these%20were%20all%20about.

The%20irony%20is%20that%20NCB%20is%20seeking%20to%20brand%20cannabis%20as%20the%20biggest%20devil%20at%20a%20time%20when%20major%20rethinking%20on%20the%20subject%20is%20going%20on%20and%20a%20debate%20is%20also%20raging%20on%20whether%20this%20substance%20should%20be%20legalized%20or%20not.%20India%u2019s%20top%20weekly%20journal%20did%20a%20cover%20on%20this%20very%20issue%20last%20month.

Dharamvir%20Gandhi%2C%20a%20Member%20of%20Parliament%20from%20Patiala%2C%20even%20moved%20a%20private%20Bill%20in%20the%20Lok%20Sabha%20seeking%20legalization%20of%20cannabis.%20A%20retired%20cardiologist%2C%20Gandhi%20is%20a%20former%20member%20of%20the%20Aam%20Aadmi%20Party%20%28AAP%29.%20He%20has%20been%20known%20for%20being%20extremely%20vocal%20on%20the%20issue%20and%20always%20held%20the%20view%20that%20legalization%20of%20the%20substance%20would%20help%20to%20also%20fight%20the%20serious%20drug%20menace%20in%20Punjab.

%3Cstrong%3EAlso%20Read%20%7C%20%3C/strong%3E%3Ca%20target%3D%22_blank%22%20rel%3D%22noopener%20noreferrer%22%20href%3D%22https%3A//opoyi.com/bombay-hc-reserves-order-on-bail-plea-filed-by-actor-rhea-chakraborty-and-others%22%3E%3Cstrong%3EBombay%20HC%20reserves%20order%20on%20bail%20plea%20filed%20by%20actor%20Rhea%20Chakraborty%20and%20others%3C/strong%3E%3C/a%3E

Gandhi%u2019s%20private%20Bill%20went%20to%20the%20extent%20of%20arguing%20that%20the%20law%20needed%20to%20be%20amended%20in%20order%20to%20allow%20people%20cheap%2C%20regulated%20and%20supervised%20supply%20of%20natural%20intoxicants%20like%20cannabis%2C%20which%2C%20he%20felt%2C%20had%20been%20part%20of%20traditional%20Indian%20culture%20for%20centuries.

Gandhi%u2019s%20Bill%20sought%20to%20distinguish%20between%20hard%20drugs%20like%20cocaine%20or%20heroin%20and%20soft%20drugs%20like%20cannabis%20or%20marijuana.

Two%20derivatives%20of%20cannabis%20%u2013%20%u2018ganja%u2019%20and%20%u2018bhang%u2019%20were%20allowed%20to%20be%20sold%20freely%20through%20licensed%20shops%20until%201985%2C%20when%20the%20then%20prime%20minister%20Rajiv%20Gandhi%20enacted%20the%20Narcotic%20Drugs%20and%20Psychotropic%20Substances%20%28NDPS%29%20Act.%20It%20was%20widely%20believed%20that%20he%20did%20so%20under%20mounting%20pressure%20from%20the%20United%20States%20.

%26nbsp%3BEven%20as%20cannabis%20was%20in%20common%20use%20in%20different%20forms%20through%20the%20centuries%20in%20India%20%2C%20its%20recorded%20history%20in%20law%20books%20dates%20back%20to%201893%2C%20when%20the%20British%26nbsp%3B%20House%20of%20Commons%20expressed%20serious%20concern%20over%20the%20increasing%20rise%20in%20the%20use%20of%20marijuana%20in%20Bengal.%26nbsp%3B%20That%20led%20to%20formation%20of%20the%20Indian%20Hemp%20Drugs%26nbsp%3B%20Commission%20which%20prepared%20an%20exhaustive%26nbsp%3B%203281-page%20report%26nbsp%3B%20in%201894.

Interestingly%2C%20the%20commission%20report%20made%20it%20loud%20and%20clear%20that%20regulated%20use%20of%20marijuana%20may%20have%20some%20beneficial%20effects.%20It%20went%20on%20to%20add%20that%20regulated%20and%20controlled%20use%20of%20the%20substance%20could%20not%20have%20any%20%u201Cevil%20effects%20-%20physically%20%2C%20mentally%20or%20morally.%u201D

What%20followed%20thereafter%20was%20free%20use%20of%20cannabis%20in%20its%20various%20forms%20all%20across%20the%20country%20.%20However%2C%20pressure%20began%20to%20be%20mounted%20against%20it%20from%201961%2C%20when%20the%20United%20States%20started%20its%20campaign%20for%20a%20global%20law%20against%20all%20drugs%20including%26nbsp%3B%20cannabis.%26nbsp%3B%20India%20successfully%20opposed%20it%20for%20a%20quarter%20of%20a%20century%2C%20but%20eventually%20succumbed%20to%20the%20international%20pressure%20and%20brought%20in%20the%20NDPS%20Act%20in%201985.

Prominent%20among%20those%20who%20have%20over%20the%20past%20endorsed%20their%20view%20in%20favour%20of%20legalization%20of%26nbsp%3B%20recreational%20or%20medicinal%20use%20of%20cannabis%20include%20former%20Union%20minister%20Maneka%20Gandhi%2C%20BJD%20member%20of%20Parliament%20Tatagatha%20Sathpathy%2C%20popular%20actor%u2013turned-BJP%20MP%20Vinod%20Khanna.

Justifying%20the%20legalization%20and%20regulation%20of%20cannabis%20%2C%20yet%20another%20well%20known%20and%20widely%20respected%20MP%20Shashi%20Tharoor%20wrote%20in%20an%20article%20in%20The%20Print%2C%20%u201Cregulation%20allows%20cannabis%20buyers%20to%20know%20what%20they%u2019re%20consuming%20and%20moderate%20their%20intake%2C%20in%20the%20same%20way%20that%20a%20drinker%20can%20distinguish%20and%20choose%20between%20a%20whiskey%20and%20a%20beer.%u201D

%3Cstrong%3EAlso%20Read%20%7C%20%3C/strong%3E%3Ca%20target%3D%22_blank%22%20rel%3D%22noopener%20noreferrer%22%20href%3D%22https%3A//opoyi.com/rhea-chakraborty-her-brother-active-members-of-drug-syndicate-ncb-tells-bombay-hc%22%3E%3Cstrong%3ERhea%20Chakraborty%2C%20her%20brother%20active%20members%20of%20drug%20syndicate%3A%20NCB%20tells%20Bombay%20HC%3C/strong%3E%3C/a%3E

A%20report%20in%20The%20Wire%20said%2C%20%u201Cthe%20main%20psychoactive%20compound%20in%20marijuana%20that%20gives%20a%20%u201Ceuphoric%u201Dsensation%20is%20tetrahydrocannabinol%20%28THC%29.%20There%20is%20evidence%20to%20show%20that%20THC%20is%20related%20to%20psychosis.%20Marijuana%20also%20contains%20a%20substance%20called%20CBD%20%28cannabidiol%29%2C%20which%20seems%20to%20counteract%20its%20effect.%20CBD%20is%20a%20non-psychoactive%20compound%20and%20that%20means%20it%20doesn%u2019t%20produce%20the%20%u201Chigh/euphoria%u201D%20associated%20with%20THC.%u201D

According%20to%20the%20report%2C%20%u201CCBD%20is%20even%20being%20tested%20as%20a%20treatment%20against%20psychosis%20and%20anxiety.%u201D%20And%20what%20comes%20in%20its%20support%20was%20a%26nbsp%3B%202017%20King%u2019s%20College%20London%20study%20which%20found%20that%20%u201Cparticipants%20treated%20with%20CBD%20had%20fewer%20psychiatric%20symptoms%20than%20those%20who%20received%20a%20placebo.%u201D

A%20former%20official%20of%20the%20Central%20Bureau%20of%20Narcotics%20Romesh%20Bhattacharjee%20too%20favoured%20the%20move%20and%20felt%20that%20the%20ban%20on%20marijuana%20was%20unnecessary%20and%20deserved%20to%20be%20relaxed.%20%u2018This%20is%20a%20good%20move%2C%20and%20this%20needs%20to%20be%20debated%20in%20the%20face%20of%20such%20stiff%20ignorance%20which%20often%20takes%20root%20in%20the%20moral%20high%20grounds%20people%20take%20after%20being%20influenced%20by%20the%20UN%20conventions.%20This%20law%20has%20been%20victimising%20people%20since%201985%2C%22%20he%20said.

Bhattacharjee%20said%20that%20he%20had%20conducted%20a%20survey%20in%20Punjab%20from%202001%20to%202011%20and%20the%20data%20showed%20that%20around%2025%2C003%20were%20languishing%20behind%20bars%20under%20the%20NDPS%20Act.%20%u201COut%20of%20that%20only%2010%20to%2060%20people%20were%20drug-traffickers%20and%20the%20rest%20were%20the%20poor%20charged%20with%20offences%20of%20possessing%20soft%20drugs%u201D%2C%20he%20sought%20to%20point%20out%u201D%5D

Meanwhile%20a%20research%20carried%20out%20at%20Yale%20University%20refutes%20such%20claims.Yale%20researchers%20are%20of%20the%20view%20%u201Cit%20is%20not%20accurate%20that%20cannabis%20is%20harmless.%20Its%20immediate%20effects%20include%20impairments%20in%20memory%20and%20in%20mental%20processes%2C%20including%20ones%20that%20are%20critical%20for%20driving.%u201D

They%20go%20on%20to%20add%20%2C%20%u201Clong-term%20use%20of%20cannabis%20may%20lead%20to%20the%20development%20of%20addiction%20of%20the%20substance%2C%20persistent%20cognitive%20deficits%2C%20and%20of%20mental%20health%20problems%20like%20schizophrenia%2C%20depression%20and%20anxiety.%20Exposure%20to%20cannabis%20in%20adolescence%20can%20alter%20brain%20development.%u201D

Yet%2C%20why%20was%20it%20that%20NCB%20was%20now%20trying%20to%20impress%20upon%20all%20and%20sundry%20that%20India%u2019s%20main%20drug%20problem%20was%20%u201Ccannabis%20%3F%20Why%20it%20also%20seemed%20to%20be%20creating%20the%20impression%20that%20use%20of%20cannabis%20had%20overtaken%20hard%20drugs%20like%20cocaine%20or%20heroin%2C%20which%20remained%20the%20most%20talked%20about%20contraband%20substance%20in%20common%20use%20among%20the%20Bollywood%20elite%20for%20years.

%3Cstrong%3EAlso%20Read%20%7C%20%3C/strong%3E%3Ca%20target%3D%22_blank%22%20rel%3D%22noopener%20noreferrer%22%20href%3D%22https%3A//opoyi.com/ncb-seizes-actors-deepika-padukone-sara-ali-khan-others-phones-amid-ongoing-drug-probe%22%3E%3Cstrong%3ENCB%20seizes%20actors%20Deepika%20Padukone%2C%20Sara%20Ali%20Khan%2C%20others%27%20phones%20amid%20ongoing%20drug%20probe%3C/strong%3E%3C/a%3E

NCB%u2019s%20current%20tirade%20against%20cannabis%20also%20makes%20one%20wonder%20why%20Bollywood%20alone%20was%20being%20targeted.%20After%20all%2C%20cannabis%20continues%20to%20be%20consumed%20quite%20openly%20at%20all%20religious%20festivals%20like%20the%20Kumbh%20Mela%2C%20the%20Magh%20Mela%20and%20similar%20religious%20fairs%20at%20popular%20pilgrimage%20destinations%20like%20Varanasi%2C%20Ayodhya%2C%20Prayagraj%2C%20Pushkar%20%u2013%20to%20name%20a%20few.%20A%20large%20number%20of%20sadhus%20can%20be%20seen%20puffing%20cannabis%20filled%20%u2018chillums%u2019%20or%20%u2018hookkas%u2019%20quite%20freely%20at%20these%20places.%20Has%20anyone%20heard%20of%20any%20NCB%20crackdown%20on%20them%3F%20Sure%20enough%20%2C%20the%20NDPS%20law%20does%20not%20exempt%20%u201Creligious%20use%u201D%20of%20cannabis.

Then%20why%20such%20double%20standards%20%u2013%20is%20the%20big%20question.

%26nbsp%3B

%3Ca%20class%3D%22mention%22%20data-mention%3D%22%23NarcoticsControlBureau%22%20data-user-id%3D%22dAq4QlzZabzQ%22%20href%3D%22/topic/narcotics-control-bureau%22%3E%23NarcoticsControlBureau%3C/a%3E%20%3Ca%20class%3D%22mention%22%20data-mention%3D%22%23RheaChakraborty%22%20data-user-id%3D%22bdDcf8TVGJLo%22%20href%3D%22/topic/rhea-chakraborty%22%3E%23RheaChakraborty%3C/a%3E%20%3Ca%20class%3D%22mention%22%20data-mention%3D%22%23SushantSinghRajput%22%20data-user-id%3D%22rCaDOiUtxgeX%22%20href%3D%22/topic/sushant-singh-rajput%22%3E%23SushantSinghRajput%3C/a%3E%20%3Ca%20class%3D%22mention%22%20data-mention%3D%22%23Drug%22%20data-user-id%3D%229QxyQt4Qygfx%22%20href%3D%22/topic/drug%22%3E%23Drug%3C/a%3E%26nbsp%3B