Marijuana is a plant which grows wild in the mountainous areas of India, and places like Manali and the Parvati valley in the western Himalayas have become famous for the production of cannabis and hashish. In fact the hash from Manali is considered to be among the best in the world and the demand for it has been growing worldwide.

But it is also rampant in our part of the hills, the eastern Himalayas, and grows wild around here. It has been so common around here that I remember we used to have shops where one could buy the weed right upto the late 90's.

Then things changed. When the winds of the 'war on drugs' reached our hills, the shops were closed down and a plant which has been used for centuries by our people, was banned and considered a prohibited item which could attract legal and punitive action.

Besides the obvious intoxicating effect, the people had many more uses for the plant. Common among these uses was the production of rope and I have come across old-timers who complain that modern ropes are not "strong enough' and they wish they could get a hold of hemp ropes even today.

But when the whole world seems to have realized the futility of banning a plant and making rapid strides towards legalizing the use of the plant, our government seems to be under pressure to enforce the stringent laws concerning the plant.

Yesterday I had to rush to a village an hours drive away as I got a call from the villagers that a bus-load of cops had descended upon them and were inquiring about marijuana plantations around there.

The village in question falls in an area of our hills which has been growing the plant for centuries. Every bit of the plant, other than buds, is used for commercial gain and it has been the main crop for the villagers for centuries. The terrain of the land also does not permit the cultivation of any other crops besides maize.

As the people there are totally dependent on the plant for the daily needs, I tried to argue with the police officers after I reached, but to no avail. The cops were adamant as they had their orders and non of my arguments about at least giving them an alternate source before destroying their source of livelihood, fell on deaf years.

So the cops started destroying the plants by cutting it before it matures. They kept at it for around 5 hours but had destroyed only 10% of the fields. I guess they had to report back to their superiors and made sure nothing was left in the easily accessible areas, but did not even attempt to go to areas which are dense, but in areas which are difficult to reach.

In my rush to reach the area, I had forgotten to carry my phone and I wanted to take some pictures, so I borrowed my friends phone and started clicking till I was asked to stop by the cops. I put below some of the pictures of the destruction of the plants and I hope you like it.

# All photos have been taken using the phone of my friend, Deepak Rai, and posted here with his knowledge and explicit permission.

![ca.png](https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmTTJRDXS731dJznpVuX6swujqQHWFyFtrxN4tw66zNbFN/ca.png)

  # The cops start the destruction of the plants
![can.png](https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmepcjVAEZUdQFxymRFnR5A62Ko5oGAN7ekeXfwgaNC3Ki/can.png)

# Another group, including women officers, at the job
![cann.png](https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmfU9HXua5VJjyqFrhZUXzZpTuGqE2AHTzMaf1NxK99KTc/cann.png)

# I was asked to stop taking pictures after this photo so I have no more!

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