Administration of Opium to Infants in India

passages occurring in ' Ain-i-akbari \ Its use appears to have been started because of its power of allaying dikrrhcea and vomiting, relieving cough and pains, such as colic, and producing sleep. Dr. Roberts in the Report of the Royal Commission on Opium (1893-94) stated that administration of opium to infants was common and that it was considered a popular household remedy for their ailments. According to this authority, the custom was widely prevalent in the United Provinces, Rajputana, Malabar and in Bombay Presidency. Although this custom has declined of late years, the problem of doping of infants with opium is of considerable importance now in many parts of India and deserves investigation. During our work in the field 011 opium habit, we have been able to make a general survey of the problem in different parts of India and have made special study of many of its aspects particularly in the Punjab, the Central Provinces and Berar. In this paper we propose to give the result of these observations.