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“Everyone in the country is consuming hashish,” was a remark that resonated during the Senate Standing Committee on Finance’s discussion of the government’s “Cannabis Control and Regulatory Authority Bill 2024.”
The bill aims to regulate the cultivation of cannabis, extraction, refining, manufacturing, and sale of its derivatives for medicinal and industrial use, and was referred to the Standing Committee on Science and Technology for further consideration.
Senator Saleem Mandviwalla expressed concerns asking whether r cannabis or hashish is harmful to health. In response, officials from the Ministry of Science and Technology emphasized the need to evaluate its level of intoxication, noting that hashish can, to some extent, be considered a form of entertainment.
The officials also highlighted the benefits of hemp, explaining that it can be used to produce cotton and improve soil fertility. Currently, hemp is grown on 50,000 acres in Pakistan.
They further pointed out that legalizing hashish could potentially generate $5 billion in revenue, though currently, hemp cultivation is only used for hashish production.
The bill was initially drafted by the Ministry of Science, but disputes arose between the ministries of Science and Anti-Narcotics over their respective roles. It was later decided that the Ministry of Defense would oversee the sector.
Meanwhile, the Anti-Narcotics Force (ANF) recently seized drugs worth over Rs 20 million in various operations across the country. The operations led to the arrest of five suspects and the recovery of over 234 kilograms of narcotics, according to the ANF spokesperson.
