Manipur Plans to Legalise Cannabis for Medicinal and Industrial Purpose

Imphal, September 22, 2019:

Manipur Chief Minister N. Biren Singh announced that his government had plans to legalise cannabis for medicinal and industrial purposes.

Speaking at a press conference on Saturday, the CM said that the state government was preparing to discuss the matter and take a call in the next state cabinet meeting.

He added that systematic cultivation of cannabis was needed in order to strictly use it for medicinal purposes.

Singh said that cannabis already grows abundantly in Manipur, and it can be used in the extraction of hemp oil, which is known for its medicinal properties.

Singh has sought the support of people, intellectuals, civil society organisations and media of Manipur to make the plan successful. He said that with everyone’s support, Manipur can become an economically and socially advance state.

It is to be noted that there has been a mass deforestation in the hilly areas of Manipur and farmers, especially in the hills, have opted for cultivating opium and marijuana as it is a lucrative business.

"A researcher came to Manipur recently, and according to the findings, it was concluded that the variety of cannabis that is found in Manipur has more medicinal properties than that found in other territories", a source told Inside Northeast.

"Thus, there has been an effort to legalize the herb for medicinal and industrial properties", the source added.

Cannabis has already been legalised in Arunachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh for medicinal purposes, said the Chief Minister.

CM Biren Singh also informed about a new program called ‘Stand-up Manipur’ which will be launched in order to provide soft loans to entrepreneurs belonging to the Scheduled Caste (SC), Scheduled Tribe (ST), Other Backward Class (OBC) categories and other minorities in the state.

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