The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-ruled states of Uttarakhand and Madhya Pradesh have legalised cannabis cultivation. In fact, a high-level committee of Himachal Pradesh MLAs from the BJP and the Congress, headed by Revenue Minister Jagat Singh Negi, had visited the two states and held a series of meetings with government officials, stakeholders and scientists before recommending that the state government allow cannabis cultivation, hoping that it would also curb illegal trade. The Rajasthan government has allowed opium farming in certain areas, but only under strict government licences and control. But do other countries have similar legal provisions? As per state government officials, more than 50 countries, including Australia, Israel, Portugal, the UK and Thailand allow medical cannabis under licence. Canada has allowed fully legal recreational markets.
