Context
The House of Representatives approved decriminalizing marijuana at the federal level
SignificanceDecriminalizing marijuana at the federal level would not end the vast majority of cannabis-use prosecutions, which occur in state courts. But it would end troublesome conflicts between state and federal law for those states that have loosened pot restrictions and would greatly ease commerce for the multibillion-dollar cannabis industry.
In news
India has voted, with other countries at UN, to no longer treat cannabis as a dangerous drug
Background
- Till 1985, the recreational use of marijuana was not a criminal offence in India.
- The Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, 1985, was brought in to fulfil India’s international obligations as a signatory to Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs, Convention on Psychotropic Substances, and United Nations Convention Against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances.
- Culturally, marijuana has been a part of India’s religious and social fabric, used for medicinal purposes, in cuisines, at festivals and, of course, recreationally.
Voting
- Last week, India voted — along with a significant majority of member-states — at the UN Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND) to remove cannabis and cannabis resin from the list of the most dangerous drugs.
- By doing so, the government has rightly signalled that the criminalisation of the recreational and medicinal use of cannabis must be done away with. It must now follow through with an amendment to the NDPS Act that reflects the spirit of its vote at the CND.
Marijuana—also called weed, herb, pot, grass, bud, ganja, Mary Jane, and a vast number of other slang terms—is a greenish-gray mixture of the dried flowers of Cannabis sativa.
Source: Indian Express
