Govt working to legalise cannabis ‘cultivation for medicinal use’

Our Correspondent

Kullu, February 22

Chief Parliamentary Secretary (CPS) Sunder Singh Thakur said today that the state government was working to legalise the cultivation of cannabis for medicinal and industrial purposes. The government would formulate a policy for cannabis cultivation so that farmers could get additional income, he added.

He presided over the inaugural ceremony of the three-day training workshop of the Himalayan Forest Research Institute (HFRI), Shimla, at the Atal Bihari Vajpayee Institute of Mountaineering and Allied Sports, Manali.

HFRI Director Dr Sandeep Sharma said that about 800 medicinal plant species were found in Himachal Pradesh and 165 species of these were traded.

He added that 60 species of medicinal plants were endangered due to over-exploitation. He emphasised on scientific cultivation and sustainable harvesting of medicinal plants.

The workshop was sponsored by the Union Ministry of Environment. About 30 persons from Lahaul and Spiti, Kullu, Koti and Pujarli in Shimla, teachers, panchayat representatives, Mahila Mandal and Yuva Mandal members, bank officials and NGOs are participating in the workshop.