China had a positive balance sheet in trading with the British, which led to a decrease of the British silver stocks. Therefore, the British tried to encourage Chinese opium use to enhance their balance, and they delivered it from Indian provinces under British control. In India, its cultivation, as well as the manufacture and traffic to China, were subject to the British East India Company (BEIC), as a strict monopoly of the British government. Indian farmers were forced by the British East India company to grow poppy against their wishes, often using a combination of strong arm tactics and debt. There was an extensive and complicated system of BEIC agencies involved in the supervision and management of opium production and distribution in India.