Data with the police department says 78 kg of cannabis was seized and cultivated cannabis in around 3,000 bighas was destroyed in Kullu district in 2013.
In Kullu district, the plantation of cannabis is confined to the higher reaches of Malana, Kasol and other areas, while in Chamba district, bordering the Doda area of Jammu and Kashmir, it is done mainly in the remote areas of Kehar, Tissa and Bharmour.
The volume of this clandestine trade can be gauged from the fact that during the past 10 years, more than 7,000 kg of poppy husk and 4,000 kg of cannabis were seized across the state.
Over 60 percent of the poppy and cannabis produce in Himachal Pradesh is smuggled out to countries like Israel, Italy, Holland and some other European countries. The remaining finds its way to Nepal or Indian states like Goa, Punjab and Delhi.
Himachal Pradesh will go to the polls for its four seats, Shimla, Kangra, Hamirpur and Mandi, May 7.
