Flavour of the season: Holi without bhang

Cops to crack down on Holi celebration parties in which bhang will be consumed as it contains cannabis

Flavour of the season: Holi without bhang

Cops to crack down on Holi celebration parties in which bhang will be consumed as it contains cannabis

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Celebrating holi with bhang this year would land you in jail. The Anti-Narcotics Cell (ANC) of the Pune Crime Branch has plans to crack down on Holi parties where bhang (a drink prepared from the narcotic substance Cannabis) will be prepared or consumed.

For this purpose, the ANC will also be using Jay - the only sniffer dog in Maharashtra available with Pune Crime Branch and trained by the state Criminal Investigation Department. Jay has been in service for the last three years and is only used to trace narcotic substances.

Rajendra Dahale, Deputy Commissioner of Police, ANC, said, "We are on the lookout for rave parties or celebrations where bhang would be offered. Strict action will be taken against any person found indulging in such illegal activities.

"Areas like Kondhwa, Yerawada, Pimpri, Marketyard, Swargate where sale and consumption of narcotic substances is high will be particularly under our surveillance."

Satish Deore, Police Inspector, ANC, said, "Bhang is basically made from cannabis which is a banned substance under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act. In some states, the consumption of cannabis is permitted for medicinal use but it often ends up being sold illegally in the black market."

What the law says
According to the Narcotics Control Bureau of India, the NDPS Act 1985 sets out the statutory framework for drug law enforcement in India.

"If a person is found possessing or consuming even a small quantity of the banned narcotic substance, he/she can be arrested under sections of the NDPS act. A person found guilty of consuming or possessing a relatively small quantity can be imprisoned for one year while in cases of large (commercial) quantities, the sentence can range from 10 to 20 years," PI Deore said.

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