When Backpackers Came in as ‘Ganja Tourists’!

By Raju Das

Shillong, May 24 : Think cannabis. Think anti-drug laws world over. Flashback, sitting blissfully on the banks of Malana river near the Himalayas, high on Malana cream as ‘ganja tourists’.

India’s ancient philosophy, culture and tradition has always fascinated and baffled the world and been the subject of debates and discussions, and Malana cream is just one of them.

“Malana cream is a high quality cannabis extract (hashish/charas) that is named after this remote ancient village in Himachal Pradesh in Kullu valley where it is produced,” Director General of Narcotic Control Bureau, OPS Malik told The Assam Tribune.

Asked if it is legal to take this drug and Malik’s answer is intoxicatingly subdued. “We (NCB) are a drug trafficking control agency. We don’t disturb cultural traditions. So long the use of these substances does not lead to business and trafficking.”

Malik walks a tightrope between his professional callings and India’s age old tradition. “We don’t allow movement of drugs from one part to the other,” he said mildly.

Malana Cream, considered the world’s best Hash or Hashish, at one point of time became so popular that hoards of backpackers crossed continents heaving 3,029 feet above the sea level to Malana village, often dubbed as “Ganja tourists,” for the drug. One Tola (about 11 grams) of Malana Cream costs above Rs 2,000. However, fakes from Nepal now comes much cheaper.

Its not that Malanis are addicts, but use of the drug is closely associated with the socio-cultural practices of these ancient people, who some say, are the oldest practitioners of democracy in the world.

Not just in Malana, use of Cannabis or Marijuana has been closely associated with the socio-cultural lives of Indians, for thousands of years now.

In the West, there has been a growing debate on Cannabis’ medicinal properties, although it has not been proved beyond doubt, only that this plant induces euphoria amongst users. Prolonged use of the drug can cause mental disorders.

“There is research going on about the medicinal properties of Cannabis, but nothing has been proved beyond doubt so far,” Malik said.

NCB, meanwhile, has been conducting raids and seizures and busting international cartels involved in smuggling of Cannabis and other banned substances across India, Malik said.

Each year, India seizes around 1,000 kg of Heroin and 4,000 kg of Cannabis extracts like Hashish and Charas. “There has been a steady decline in the use of Hashish and Charas in India and hence lesser seizures over the years,” he informed.

[ via Assam Tribune ]