OPIUM POPPY CULTIVATION AND PRODUCTION OF OPIUM AND POPPY STRAW

The opium poppy for production of opium or poppy straw shall not be cultivated save on account of the Central Government and in the tracts notified by it from time to time and in accordance with the conditions of a licence issued by the District Opium Officer under rule 8 of THE NARCOTIC DRUGS AND PSYCHOTROPIC SUBSTANCES RULES, 1985.

Subject to the general conditions relating to grant of licence notified by the Central Government, the District Opium Officer may issue licence to any person for a crop year for cultivation of the opium poppy for production of opium or poppy straw on receipt of an application made by that person in Form No.2 .

Such licence of cultivation of opium poppy may be granted by the District Opium Officer on payment of a fee of rupees twenty-five.

(1) The cultivator shall, during the course of harvesting, produce daily before the Lambardar, each day’s collection of opium from his crop for weighment.

(2) The Lambardar shall make arrangements to weigh such opium and make necessary entries in the records to be maintained by him as may be specified by the Narcotics Commissioner in this behalf.

(3) The cultivator and the Lambardar shall attest the entries made in such records under their signature/thumb-impression with date, showing the quantity of opium weighed on a particular day.

(4) The proper officer shall conduct check weighment of the opium collected by the cultivators with reference to the entries in the Lambardar’s record and indicate his finding therein which shall be attested by him and the Lambardar under their signature with date.

(5) The variations between the quantity of opium produced by the cultivator indicated in the Lambardar’s record and as found by the proper officer during his check, shall be inquired into by the proper officer in order to ascertain the liability of the cultivator for punishment under section 19 of the Act.

All opium, the produce of land cultivated with opium poppy, shall be delivered by the cultivators to the District Opium Officer or any other officer duly authorised in this behalf, by the Narcotics Commissioner at a place as may be specified by such officer.