KATHMANDU: The Government has formed a task force in coordination with the Ministry of Home Affairs to conduct a feasibility study on cannabis farming.
Minister for Finance Prakash Sharan Mahat, while presenting the budget for the fiscal year 2023/24, announced that he would take the initiative to study the prospect of cannabis cultivation. Point no. 105 of the budget statement said the feasibility of cannabis cultivation for medicinal use will be studied.
The newly formed task force has been given two mandates. It will study on medicinal use of cannabis and the prospect of industrialisation of cannabis farming. The task force will conduct research on making clothes from hemp stems, leaves and fibres.
The meeting held under the chairmanship of Finance Minister Mahat at the Finance Ministry on Monday formed the task force. The members of the task force include joint secretaries of the Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Supplies, Ministry of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development and representatives of Nepal Police.
Minister Mahat has instructed the task force to submit its report within a month after starting its work.
