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Interesting Facts about Marijuana
Marijuana is the most commonly used illegal drug in the world, with an estimated 125 million people consuming it in some form or the other every year. In India, marijuana use has been historically bound to faith and mysticism. It is said to be a drug that helps the user attain “ecstasy in the original sense of the word”. India has consumed and celebrated charas (hash), bhang and weed for centuries.
However, implementation of stringent narcotic laws in 1986 made the sale, consumption, production and transportation of marijuana illegal in the country. 24 years on, here are some interesting facts about marijuana.
Marijuana Addiction Is Rare
An epidemiological study showed that only 9 per cent of those who use marijuana end up being clinically dependent on it. The ‘comparable rates’ for tobacco, alcohol and cocaine stood at 32 per cent, 15 per cent, and 16 per cent respectively.
New Jobs Are Created
Use of marijuana for recreational and medical purposes in Colorado has created 10,000 new jobs in the area. Maybe if some countries make it, legal new drug industry could be created and could help in reducing the unemployment rate of the country.
Even Government Can Earn
If government legalize and impose taxation on marijuana, it will stand to earn huge amounts of revenue that will otherwise go to the Italian and Israeli drug cartels. In an open letter to US President George Bush, around 500 economists, led by Nobel Prize winner Milton Friedman, called for marijuana to be “legal but taxed and regulated like other goods”.
Marijuana as Medicine
Studies have shown that marijuana use has dozens of medical benefits. It treats glaucoma, prevents cancer from spreading to other parts of the body, reduces anxiety, slows the progress of Alzheimer’s disease, improves metabolism and is even said to spur creativity in our brain.
Prohibition Has failed
It is said that 60,000 kgs of hash and 40,000 kgs of opium is produced in Himachal Pradesh. Out of that, only 500 kgs is seized annually. As per reports, “more than 1,600 hectares of cultivable farmland and an additional 500 hectares of illicitly filled public forests are currently under cannabis cultivation”. The rate is only increasing. Moreover, these days, it is pretty easy to buy marijuana in India, and its consumption is widespread among the youth. So it is fair to say that prohibition has failed to curb the ‘problem’.
Marijuana has limited Withdrawal Symptoms.
“I’ve heard you have to smoke something like 15,000 joints in 20 minutes to get a toxic amount of delta-9 tetrahydrocannabinol,” says Dr. Paul Hornby, a biochemist, and human pathologist. “I challenge anybody to do that.” Not only is it virtually impossible to overdose on marijuana, the users face nominal withdrawal symptoms after consuming it.
Illegal Trade & Crime
Marijuana is an illegal drug, and black-market makes a lot of money in selling it. If the drug could be legalized, the government can actually control the black market, and people could make the trade with the proper background. This could really create a great deal to the criminals. Who knows they might run out of business. 
Marijuana is less harmful than alcohol.
Marijuana consumption was never regarded as a socially deviant behaviour any more than drinking alcohol was. In fact, keeping it legal was considered as an ‘enlightened view’. It is now medically proven that marijuana is less harmful than alcohol. Unlike alcoholics, stoners don’t indulge in rash driving or violent fights. They tend to be calm and pleasant under the influence of marijuana.
Quality of Marijuana
In many countries, dealers often mix hash and weed with chemicals or other drugs to improve the taste, colour, texture or ‘high’ of the stuff. For a good quality of marijuana, it should be regulated.
Growth in India
In states like Himachal Pradesh and Tamil Nadu, where cannabis plants grow, marijuana is the only source of income for many locals. However, being a banned substance, the farmers are forced to sell it at a low price to the drug dealers, and they face additional pressure from the police as well, who are paid to destroy the cannabis plantations.
Farmers form the backbone of the Indian Economy, making up more than 40% of the workforce. However, every day 28 people dependent on farming commit suicide—the post-harvest losses in the country amount to over 93,000 crores per year. The loss of 93,000 crores constitutes approximately 40% of the country’s total produce. This occurs due to the perishable nature of agricultural produce, which often forces farmers to sell their produce at the prevailing market price, be it high or low, thereby resulting in a loss of bargaining power.
Addressing this issue through the positive power of social entrepreneurship, Enactus DCAC, an international not for profit student body organisation, initiated Project Zaraat for the upliftment of the farming community. The mission of Project Zaraat is to minimise post-harvest losses and enhance forward linkages through a self-sustaining social enterprise.
Project Zaraat | Image Source: NAC Media
Under the mentorship and guidance of Michigan State University and the Indian Agricultural Research Institute, Zaraat provides the farmers with a unique storage solution that works on the principle of evaporative cooling. It is affordable, portable, and eco-friendly, making it different from conventional storage facilities. Moreover, this solution increases the shelf life of the produce by upto ten days, ensuring that the quality of produce does not deteriorate. Apart from this, they also aim to partner with various B2B aggregators to ensure a rise in income for the farmers and provide them with payment security.
Project Zaraat | Image Source: NAC Media
Currently, they are in the process of integrating farmers into an FPO to ensure collective bargaining power. They are also exploring sustainable agriculture practices that are vital in a climate constrained world.
Project Zaraat is a recipient of the KPMG Ethics Grant and also received a Special Mention at the Enactus Early Stage National Competition 2021.
Building on this by the end of the year, they aim to sustain the lives of 100 farmers by providing them with an income boost of 25%, reduce post-harvest losses by a whopping 60%, and minimise the energy consumption by 20%. For more information, visit www.enactusdcac.com.
Project Zaraat by Enactus DCAC
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