What Is Section 2 Of NDPS Act?
Section 2 of NDPS Act defines key terms under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985:
- Addict: A person dependent on any narcotic drug or psychotropic substance.
- Board: Refers to the Central Board of Excise and Customs under the 1963 Revenue Act.
Cannabis (hemp) includes:
- Charas: Resin from cannabis plant, crude or refined, includes hashish oil.
- Ganja: Flowering or fruiting tops of cannabis (excluding seeds and leaves unless with tops).
- Mixtures: Any mix or drink made from the above.
- Cannabis plant: Any plant from the genus Cannabis.
- Central Government factories: Factories owned by the Central Government or companies with over 51% government shareholding.
Coca derivative includes:
- Crude cocaine (extract used for making cocaine).
- Ecgonine and its derivatives.
- Cocaine (methyl ester of benzoyl-ecgonine).
- Preparations with over 0.1% cocaine.
Coca leaf:
- Leaves of coca plant excluding those with ecgonine or cocaine removed.
- Mixtures with or without neutral material. (Excludes preparations under 0.1% cocaine).
- Coca plant: Any species of the Erythroxylon genus.
- Commercial quantity: Any quantity above the limit notified by the Central Government.
- Controlled delivery: Permits monitored transit of illegal drugs to catch offenders under Section 50A.
- Corresponding law: Any law that matches the provisions of this Act.
- Controlled substance: A substance the government declares as controlled, considering drug production risk or international agreements.
- Conveyance: Includes any vehicle, aircraft, or vessel.
- Essential narcotic drug: A drug the government approves for medical and scientific use.
Illicit traffic includes:
- Cultivation of coca, opium poppy, or cannabis.
- Possession, sale, use, transport, or trade of narcotic or psychotropic substances.
- Leasing premises for these activities.
- Financing, abetting, or harboring involved persons.
International Convention refers to:
- Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs (1961).
- 1972 Geneva Protocol.
- 1971 Vienna Convention on Psychotropic Substances.
- Any future treaty India joins.
Manufacture includes:
- Processes (excluding cultivation) to obtain drugs.
- Refining and transforming substances.
- Making drug preparations (excluding prescriptions).
Manufactured drug:
- All coca derivatives, medicinal cannabis, opium derivatives, poppy straw concentrate.
- Other declared drugs (excluding those specifically exempted).
- Medicinal cannabis: Extract or tincture of cannabis for medical use.
- Narcotic Commissioner: Appointed under Section 5.
- Narcotic drug: Includes coca leaf, cannabis, opium, poppy straw, and all manufactured forms.
Opium:
- Coagulated juice of the opium poppy.
- Mixtures with this juice (excluding preparations with ≤0.2% morphine).
- Opium derivative includes:
- Medicinal or prepared opium.
- Morphine, codeine, thebaine, and their salts.
- Heroin and its salts.
- Preparations with >0.2% morphine or heroin.
Opium poppy:
- Papaver somniferum L.
- Any Papaver species used for opium extraction, as notified.
- Poppy straw: All parts of opium poppy (except seeds) after harvest.
- Poppy straw concentrate: Extracted alkaloids from poppy straw.
- Preparation: Any solution, mix, or dose containing narcotic or psychotropic substances.
- Prescribed: As defined in the rules under this Act.
- Production: Separation of drugs from source plants.
- Psychotropic substance: Any listed natural or synthetic substance in the Act’s Schedule.
- Small quantity: Any amount below the government-specified threshold.
- Import inter-State: Moving substances from one Indian State or Union Territory to another.
- Import into India: Bringing substances from outside India, including via ports or airports, even if not removed from the transport.
- Explanation: “India” includes its territorial waters for clauses 32 and 33.
Definition of Export from India
- “To export from India” means taking goods out of India to any place outside the country. This includes all grammatical forms and related expressions.
- “To export inter-State” means moving items from one State or Union Territory to another within India.
- “To transport” means moving something from one location to another within the same State or Union Territory.
- “Use” in relation to narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances excludes personal consumption. It refers to all other types of usage.
- Any word or expression not defined here but mentioned in the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, will carry the same meaning as in that Code.
- For clauses (v), (vi), (xv), and (xvi), percentages in liquid preparations follow a standard formula.
- One percent means each 100 ml of the preparation contains:
- 1 gram of a solid substance, or1 milliliter of a liquid substance.
- This scale adjusts proportionally for higher or lower percentages.
- The Central Government may change this calculation method. It can set new rules based on advancements in measuring techniques for liquid preparations.
Popular Case Laws
- Bombay High Court – Clarification on ‘Ganja’ Definition
Date: October 7, 2024
Summary: The court clarified that under Section 2(iii)(b) of the NDPS Act, “ganja” refers exclusively to the flowering or fruiting tops of the cannabis plant, explicitly excluding seeds and leaves when not accompanied by the tops. This interpretation led to the grant of bail due to improper classification of the seized material.
- Pathan Bhilala v. The State of Madhya Pradesh
Date: February 5, 2025
Summary: The court emphasized that stems, leaves, and roots are not considered “ganja” as per Section 2(iii)(b) of the NDPS Act. Therefore, possession of these parts without the flowering or fruiting tops does not constitute an offense under this section.
- Delhi High Court – Bail Granted to Foreign National
Date: May 14, 2025
Summary: The court granted bail to a Kyrgyz woman charged under Sections 20, 25, and 29 of the NDPS Act, noting that the quantity of charas recovered was “intermediate.” The court held that foreign nationality alone is not a valid reason to deny bail, especially when the accused’s passport is seized, mitigating the risk of absconding.
- Calcutta High Court – Default Bail Not Applicable Without Chemical Report
Date: May 14, 2025
Summary: The court ruled that an accused under the NDPS Act is not entitled to default bail if a charge sheet is filed within the statutory time limit, even if it lacks the chemical analysis report. The absence of such a report does not invalidate the investigation or entitle the accused to statutory bail.
Conclusion
The Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act plays a vital role in safeguarding society from the harmful effects of drug abuse and illegal trafficking. It provides a strong legal framework to regulate, control, and prevent the misuse of narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances. By enforcing strict penalties and empowering law enforcement agencies, the Act acts as a deterrent against drug-related crimes. Moreover, it balances punitive measures with provisions for the rehabilitation of addicts. In a country like India, where drug abuse threatens public health and safety, the NDPS Act remains essential in ensuring a drug-free society and promoting lawful use of controlled substances for medical and scientific purposes.
