price of malana cream has gone up from Rs 5,000 to Rs 15,000 per 10 gms, but the demand for the dope is still growing strong
Price of malana cream has gone up from Rs 5,000 to Rs 15,000 per 10 gms, but the demand for the dope is still growing strong
We were told the glaciers were melting, the sea level was rising, the lakes were drying up, the earth was getting warmer, but nobody seemed to care.
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But this one will surely make an impact. Lesser rainfall and warmer climate has hit the Malana cream crop in the hills of Himachal Pradesh this year and supply across India will be affected.
Environmental experts blame it on rampant deforestation and reckless hydel projects in the northern Indian state that is known for producing the world's best hash.
And with the climate playing spoilsport the cops have decided to storm the party as well.
Local police and the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) are planning fresh raids against hash cartels in Haryana, Delhi and Punjab.
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"It is the best time to finish off this nuisance. The dealers have suffered huge losses and they will be desperately trying to cover up their losses," an NCB official told MiD DAY.
Crackdown plan
The local police are also ready with their crackdown plan. "We are setting up teams to destroy the crop. We will start operations in September and October," said Superintendent of Police, Kullu, K K Indoria.
Last year, the Malana cream which derives its name from Malana, a small village near Manali posted a bumper crop as the cops looked the other way and the cultivation got ample rainfall to prosper.
Hostile climate
The hostile climate has not only hit the quantity of the crop, but has also affected the quality.
Meanwhile, the demand for the drug has gone up and so has its price. An NCB official, wishing anonymity, confirmed that dealers are ready to cough up Rs 15,000 for the same quantity, which they used to procure for Rs 5,000.
A relentless crackdown by narcotics officials since 2002 had ensured that hashish cultivation in Malana was put paid to.
But when the officials were lax, the crop growers shifted base to the dense forests where they managed to grow a hybrid variety of the cannabis.
However, what a police crackdown failed to achieve, bad weather has accomplished.
Scanty rainfall
Apart from hash, scanty rainfall has also affected apple crop in the state.u00a0
Director, Met Department, Shimla, Manmohan Singh said this winter there was 50 per cent lesser snowfall in Himachal Pradesh as compared to previous years.
"There was 60 per cent lesser rainfall this year as compared to the previous years," he added.
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Prominent Scientist and Head, Himalayan Institute of Environment, Kullu, JC Kunyal blamed it on global warming.
"According to a recent international study, the rise in mean global temperature has been 0.6 degrees Celsius between 1965 and 1998, but in Kullu Valley it has been alarmingly 0.9 degrees, the highest in the world,"
he said.
"Rampant deforestation, haphazard construction of hydel projects and increasing population in the area are main reasons behind it. The hydel potential of the area is also being overexploited," Singh added.
No Cannabis Only peas
To root out the production of the globally infamous contraband, the state government has come out with a noble idea.
In the areas like Malana, Pulga, Togh and a few other high altitude areas in the Manikaran belt, the state government is offering subsidised pea seed.
The timings of pea cultivation coincide with hash cultivation in Himachal Pradesh. The peas are a very popular cash crop in the state and of late farmers in high altitude areas have benefited a lot from the crop.
Legend of Malana
Malana is a tiny village in Himachal about 100 km from Manali not far from where the snow leopards live.
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This village is also the home to descendants of Alexander the Great's soldiers (the green eyes and peppering of Greek in the local language startles visitors).
The hashish here, just like Havana cigars that are rumoured to be rolled between the thighs of young women, is made fine by the soft hands of children in the village.
Dropping names
Malana hash which is popularly known as Malana cream, Ak-47, Russian Lady and Snake bite in the world of drugs is grown in the hills of Himachal Pradesh, particularly in and around the areas of Kullu district.
Both nationally and internationally the drug is considered the best variety of hash in the world and its international market expanded manifold in the last two years.
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