WORLD HISTORY

Detailed explanation-1: -Opium poppy is cultivated in three states of India – Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh – in the following 22 districts: Madhya Pradesh: Mandsaur, Neemuch, Ratlam, Ujjain, Jhabua, Shajapur, and Rajgarh.

Detailed explanation-2: -The opium so procured is sent to the Government Opium and Alkaloid Factories situated at Neemuch and Ghazipur.

Detailed explanation-3: -Since when has opium been grown in India? India has been growing poppy at least since the 15th century, as per historical records. The British East India Company assumed monopoly on the cultivation of poppy when the Mughal Empire was on the decline, and the entire trade was brought under government control by 1873.

Detailed explanation-4: -The British East India Company established a monopoly on opium cultivation in the Indian province of Bengal, where they developed a method of growing opium poppies cheaply and abundantly. Other Western countries also joined in the trade, including the United States, which dealt in Turkish as well as Indian opium.