People in Thailand are now free to grow and own marijuana plants at home after its government officially removed cannabis from its list of banned drugs.

It is the first Asian country to legalise weed in a region known for its strict anti-drug laws.

Health minister Anutin Charnvirakul celebrated the news by announcing his plan to send more than a million cannabis seeds across the country, as he seeks to rebrand Thailand as a ‘weed wonderland’.

Under the new rules citizens are allowed to grow, eat and sell marijuana on a medicinal basis – although smoking it recreationally is still technically illegal.

The government has also set restrictions on the THC level of products allowed to be sold, in an effort to dissuade smokers from using it to ‘get high’ instead of as pain relief.

But advocates claim the move effectively decriminalises the product in all but name.

The government, banking on the plant as a cash crop, hopes the upcoming cannabis boom will kickstart the economy following the post-Covid recession.

Chokwan Kitty Chopaka, who owns a shop selling cannabis gum sweets, said: ‘After Covid, the economy going down the drain, we really do need this.’

Some Thai advocates celebrated the news this morning by buying marijuana at a café which was previously limited to selling products made from the parts of the plant that do not get people high.

The dozen or so people who turned up at the Highland Café in Bangkok were able to choose from a variety of buds with names such as Sugarcane, Bubblegum, Purple Afghani, and UFO.

Rittipong Bachkul, 24 and the day’s first customer, said: ‘I can say it out loud that I am a cannabis smoker. I don’t need to hide like in the past when it was branded as an illegal drug.’

So far there is no limit to the amount people can grow and smoke at home, outside of requiring them to register on a government app called ‘PlookGanja’ before they start.

‘We should know how to use cannabis,’ said health minister and deputy prime minister Charnvirakul, who hopes that the move will see Thailand become a major player in the medical marijuana market.

‘If we have the right awareness, cannabis is like gold, something valuable, and should be promoted.’

The minister said the government prefers to ‘build an awareness’, which would be better than patrolling to check on people and using the law to punish them.

The Thai government also announced its intention to release more than 4,000 prisoners convicted of cannabis-related offences.

A wider draft law on cannabis control is currently being considered in Thai parliament, with advocates claiming the coming years could see a gradual relaxing of the rules governing its use.

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