Maj Gen (r) Zafar Ullah appointed chief of cannabis control authority

Major General (Retd) Zafar Ullah Khan has been appointed as the Director General (DG) of the Cannabis Control and Regulatory Authority (CCRA).

The Cabinet Secretariat Establishment Division issued a notification dated January 29, which read, “The Prime Minister [Shehbaz Sharif] has been pleased to approve the appointment of Major General (Retd) as Director General Cannabis Control and Regulatory Authority (CCRA) under Cabinet Division.”

As per the notification, Zafar Ullah Khan, Hilal-e-Imtiaz (Military), was appointed under Section 7(1) of the CCRA Act, 2024, which reads, “There shall be a Director General of the authority who shall be appointed by the Prime Minister at such remuneration and on such terms and conditions as may be prescribed by regulations.”

CCRA is the regulatory body responsible for overseeing the cultivation, processing, and sale of cannabis products in Pakistan. The authority is responsible for the issuance of licenses, setting standards, and enforcement of regulations to ensure the industry’s compliance with international conventions and national laws.

The authority was established in March 2024 after an ordinance was officially promulgated by then-President Arif Alvi.  

In September 2024, the National Assembly (NA) passed the CCRA Bill 2024 to regulate cannabis cultivation and the sale of its extracts for medicinal use.

According to the text of the bill, cannabis was defined as “resin (charas) that is, the separated resin, whether crude or purified, obtained from the cannabis plant or leaves of the cannabis plant and also includes concentrated preparation and resin known as hashish oil or liquid hashish.”

Cannabis was further defined as “the flowering or fruiting tops of the cannabis plant excluding the seed and leaves when not accompanied by the tops from which the resin has not been extracted, by whatever name they may be designated or known, and include all forms known as bhang, siddhi or ganja.”

Earlier, the federal government had removed DG Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) Ahmed Jahangir and reassigned him as an Officer on Special Duty (OSD) in the Establishment Division.

“With the approval of the Federal Government, Mr Ahmad Ishaque Jehangir, a BS-21 Officer of [the] Police Service of Pakistan, presently serving as Director General, Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), under [the] Interior Division, is transferred and posted as Officer on Special Duty (OSD) in Establishment Division, with immediate effect and until further orders,” a notification read.

Geo News, while citing sources, reported that the failure of several FIA officials and other authorities concerned with stopping the cases of human trafficking led to Jahangir's dismissal.