The legality of the use of CBD Oil in India, and why the NDPS Act does not apply to it

The recreational use of cannabis (hemp) and its resin (hashish or hash) in India was made in 1985 by the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985 ("NDPS Act"). The NDPS Act itself was the result of India's commitment under the Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs, 1961 ("Single Convention"). Interestingly, neither the NDPS Act nor the Single Convention disallowed the therapeutic use of cannabis. Nevertheless, the medical use of cannabis in India is almost non-existent.

The ground reality is that most state governments in India are reluctant to issue licenses to cultivate and grow cannabis, even though the NDPS Act gives them the authority to do so. Therefore, almost all cannabis that manufacturers of cannabis-based drugs use to grow in the wild. Since the cannabis plant grows in the forest with little human intervention, there is little scope for quality control and standardization of cannabis, which is required to make cannabis-based medicine. This is a major challenge for manufacturers and discourages them from manufacturing cannabis-based drugs on a meaningful scale.

The NDPS Act does not, however, apply to the leaves and seeds of the cannabis plant when they are separated from the flower or fruiting top of the plant, which is its most intoxicating parts. This is why cannabis (the leaf of the hemp plant) is sold freely in most states in India, which is certainly a matter of excise control, as it is still a narcotic.

Since the leaves of the cannabis plant are relatively easy to use, there are wide possibilities for its use in medicine. One of the major chemicals (or cannabinoids) present in cannabis is CBD or cannabidiol. CBD has medicinal properties, but not narcotic properties. The World Health Organization (WHO) itself recommended its exclusion from the singles conference because it "does not have mentally compressed qualities and has no potential for abuse and the ability to generate dependency".

Most CBD oils are elixinol hemp oil (including over the internet) sold in India are actually made from full-spectrum extracts of the leaves of the cannabis plant, meaning that they contain all the cannabinoids, including CBD, that are present in the leaves. Since the leaves of the cannabis plant are not considered a narcotic drug, CBD oil made from extracts of the leaves should also not be considered as a narcotic. In other words, the consumption of CBD oil manufactured from the leaves of the cannabis plant should not attract the provisions of the NDPS Act.

In fact, CBD oil manufactured under a license issued under the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940 can be legitimately used by individuals for medical purposes in India.

It is easy to confuse CBD oil with cannabis or hash oil, but the two differ in terms of both medicinal and legal remedies: cannabis or hash oil, unlike CBD oil, is 100% narcotic and subject to strict monitoring and control is. As per the provisions of the NDPS Act in India. Its consumption can also attract provisions of the NDPS Act and may result in imprisonment.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cannabinol