Power of Central Government to permit, control and regulate

Section 9 of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985 deals with power of Central Government to permit, control and regulate. Subject to the provisions of section 8, the Central Government may, by rules-- (a) permit and regulate-- (i) the cultivation, or gathering of any portion (such cultivation or gathering being only on account of the Central Government) of coca plant, or the production, possession, sale, purchase, tran The Act came into force on 14 Nov 1985.

(1) Subject to the provisions of section 8, the Central Government may, by rules--

(a) permit and regulate--

(i) the cultivation, or gathering of any portion (such cultivation or gathering being only on account of the Central Government) of coca plant, or the production, possession, sale, purchase, transport, import inter-State, export inter-State, use or consumption of coca leaves;

(ii) the cultivation (such cultivation being only on account of Central Government) of the opium poppy;

(iii) the production and manufacture of opium and production of poppy straw;

¹[(iiia) the possession, transport, import inter-State, export inter-State, warehousing, sale, purchase, consumption and use of poppy straw produced from plants from which no juice has been extracted through lancing;]

(iv) the sale of opium and opium derivatives from the Central Government factories for export from India or sale to State Government or to manufacturing chemists;

(v) the manufacture of manufactured drugs (other than prepared opium) but not including manufacture of medicinal opium or any preparation containing any manufactured drug from materials which the maker is lawfully entitled to possess;

¹[(va) the manufacture, possession, transport, import inter-State, export inter-State, sale, purchase, consumption and use of essential narcotic drugs:

Provided that where, in respect of an essential narcotic drug, the State Government has granted licence or permit under the provisions of section 10 prior to the commencement of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (Amendment) Act, 2014 (16 of 2014), such licence or permit shall continue to be valid till the date of its expiry or for a period of twelve months from such commencement, whichever is earlier.]

(vi) the manufacture, possession, transport, import inter-State, export inter-State, sale, purchase, consumption or use of psychotropic substances;

(vii) the import into India and export from India and transhipment of narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances;

(b) prescribe any other matter requisite to render effective the control of the Central Government over any of the matters specified in clause (a).

(2) In particular and without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing power, such rules may

(a) empower the Central Government to fix from time to time the limits within which licences may be given for the cultivation of the opium poppy;

(b) require that all opium, the produce of land cultivated with the opium poppy, shall be delivered by the cultivators to the officers authorised in this behalf by the Central Government;

(c) prescribe the forms and conditions of licences for cultivation of the opium poppy and for production and manufacture of opium; the fees that may be charged therefor; the authorities by which such licences may be granted, withheld, refused or cancelled and the authorities before which appeals against the orders of withholding, refusal or cancellation of licences shall lie;

(d) prescribe that opium shall be weighed, examined and classified according to its quality and consistence by the officers authorised in this behalf by the Central Government in the presence of the cultivator at the time of delivery by the cultivator;

(e) empower the Central Government to fix from time to time the price to be paid to the cultivators for the opium delivered;

(f) provide for the weighment, examination and classification, according to the quality and consistence, of the opium received at the factory and the deductions from or additions (if any) to the standard price to be made in accordance with the result of such examination; and the authorities by which the decisions with regard to the weighment, examination, classification, deductions or additions shall be made and the authorities before which appeals against such decisions shall lie;

(g) require that opium delivered by a cultivator, if found as a result of examination in the Central Government factory to be adulterated, may be confiscated by the officers authorised in this behalf;

(h) prescribe the forms and conditions of licences for the manufacture of manufactured drugs, the authorities by which such licences may be granted and the fees that may be charged therefor;

²[(ha) prescribe the forms and conditions of licences or permits for the manufacture, possession, transport, import inter-State, export inter-State, sale, purchase, consumption or use of essential narcotic drugs, the authorities by which such licence or permit may be granted and the fees that may be charged therefor;]

(i) prescribe the forms and conditions of licences or permits for the manufacture, possession, transport, import inter-State, export inter-State, sale, purchase, consumption or use of psychotropic substances, the authorities by which such licences or permits may be granted and the fees that may be charged therefor;

(j) prescribe the ports and other places at which any kind of narcotic drugs or psychotropic substances may be imported into India or exported from India or transhipped; the forms and conditions of certificates, authorisations or permits, as the case may be, for such import, export or transhipment; the authorities by which such certificates, authorisations or permits may be granted and the fees that may be charged therefor.

Section 9, The Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985 (Act 61 of 1985).