§ Colonel DAYasked the Under-Secretary of State for India whether he can state the amount of opium fixed by the League of Nations as a maximum per 10,000 of the population of India; whether he can state the amount in seers per 10,000 of the population consumed in Burma, Assam, Balasore district of Orissa, Godavari district of Madras, Ferozepore, and Calcutta; what steps the Government is taking to reduce the excessive and injurious consumption of opium; and what proportion of the revenue in India is derived from the opium traffic?
§ Earl WINTERTONNo such maximum has been fixed by the League of Nations. The figures asked for in the second part of the question are as follow:
These figures are for 1924–25 except that for the Godavari district, for which the figure for 1923–24, being the latest available, is given.
Consumption of opium in seers per 10,000 of population. Burma 25.6 Assam 49 Balasore district of Bihar and Orissa 56 Godavari district of Madras 59 Ferozepore district of the Punjab 61 Calcutta (inclusive of the suburbs and of towns of Howrah and Bally) 88 The Government of India have consulted the Provincial Governments, within whose spheres the matter lies, as to the desirability of taking special measures to check consumption in areas where it is excessive.
The total of the gross revenues of the Government of India and of Provincial Governments derived from opium for 653W 1923–24 amounted to 3.36 per cent. of the total gross revenues of British India. This percentage includes both the Government of India's revenue from exports and from sale at cost price to Provincial Governments, as well as the receipts from opium received by Provincial Governments themselves.