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Cocaine

Last updated on Jun 16, 2022

Trigger Warning: The following content contains information on drugs and narcotics which some readers may find disturbing. 

Cocaine is a manufactured drug made from coca leaf of the coca plant. It is illegal to manufacture, possess, transport and inter-state import/export, sell, purchase and use cocaine. The punishment for carrying out any of these activities is proportional to the quantity of Cocaine involved and not the type of activity.

  • Small quantity (2 gm) – jail time  up to 1 year and/or fine up to Rs 10,000
  • 2 gms – 100 gms – jail time  up to 10 years and fine up to Rs 1 lakh 
  • Commercial quantity (100 gm) – jail time  between 10 and 20 years, and fine between Rs 1 lakh and 2 lakhs. The Court may also impose a fine of more than 2 lakhs.1

Coca Plant

There is also a separate punishment for cultivating, gathering, producing, possessing, transporting, importing, exporting, selling, purchasing and using the Coca Plant. For any of these activities, you can be punished with jail time  up to 10 years and fine up to Rs 1 lakh.2

  1. Section 27, Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985[↩]
  2. Section 16, Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985[↩]

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