Bachubhai is one of the 2,000-odd opium users, mainly Kathi Darbars (people from Kathiawadi royalty), who have been granted licence by the erstwhile princely kingdoms to consume and deal in opium. But, that luxury of enjoying kasumbo ghodhvo -- drinking opium water in groups in the erstwhile princely courts -- has become a scourge. The mixture has about .2 per cent of opium in it and becomes an addiction after some time.

Several years ago, these men spent long hours sitting in large groups in courtyards, doing nothing and floating away in opium-induced hallucination. Their royal forefathers had left behind property. All that is over, spent in a lifestyle of luxury and addiction. Opium is the only reminder of the past.

Today, theold men, all of whom are above 60 and with hardly a pair of proper clothes, have to fight and beg for their quota of poppy-opium which has became scarce as well as dearer because many licensed opium shops have closed down.

At least 12 licences have been cancelled or suspended by the Prohibition and Excise department following complaints of blackmarketing.

Says Vikramsinh Sisodiya, prohibition and excise inspector of Amreli: ``When ever we seize excess stock of poppy or opium, we have detained the retailers for interrogation and if there is a police case the licences are suspended. Due to this, I think, there are very few retailers willing to take the risks now and are closing down.''

Now, there are only about 16 opium shops all over Amreli which cater to nearly 2,000 licensed users. Each shop gets 100 kg a month and each user 1 kg a month. The 2,000 licensed users in Amreli line up for their quota of opium at the beginning of every month.

The shortage is due to two reasons: One, now there are lessshops. Two, many of the existing stocks sell their stuff in black market. The result: These old men have to hop from one taluka to another, often travelling more than 200 kms in a day, in search of opium.

``One licensed user introduces many others because it is a habit to drink in groups. So the number of users is increasing,'' says one retailer.

The government has set the price at Rs 60 per kg. ``But, very few times it is available at that price,'' says Wardhraj, an addict. ``The opium is as good as sold even before the stock reaches the outlets because it is already decided who will get how much. If you are unlucky you may have to buy in black for Rs 400 to Rs 600 depending on how desperate you are.''

At the time of Independence, there were more than 30 such retail outlets in Amreli. ``But as time passed and legislation and laws came into existence, many surrendered their retail shop licences,'' says Kalabhai, one of the many aging opium addicts and a descendant of royalty of Wadia.

According toAdditional District Magistrate and Resident Deputy Collector Ashok Sharma although licences are still issued for poppy-opium usage, very few licences are issued for retailers. ``It is a very lengthy procedure and only the state government issues it,'' he says.

The opium in poppy-fragment form is transported from either Rajashtan or Madhya Pradesh.