Ban may be extended, says state Govt.
By Dileep Thekkethil
The Arvind Kejriwal-led government on Friday banned the use of all forms of chewable tobacco products in Delhi for the next one year.
The ban will have a far-reaching impact on sales, purchase and storage of all forms of chewable tobacco, this includes gutka, pan masala, khaini and zarda.
The notification banning the tobacco products has been issued by the Food and Safety department of the Delhi government.
The selling of raw tobacco products also comes under the ambit of the ban as a similar notification of the Delhi government back in 2012 banning gutka resulted in the retailers selling raw tobacco and betel leaves in separate pouches to circumvent the ban.
It is in this scenario that the government issued the new notification banning all forms of chewable tobacco in the state for the next one year. It also said that the ban will be extended after taking into cognizance the response of the people.
“The manufacture, storage, distribution, or sale of tobacco which is either flavoured, scented or mixed… and whether going by the name or form of gutka, pan, masala, flavoured/scented tobacco, kharra, or otherwise… whether packaged or unpackaged and/or sold as one product, or through packaged as separate products, sold or distributed in such manner so as to easily facilitate mixing by the consumer” is prohibited for a period of one year, the notification stated.
A similar ban was imposed by the state of Kerala and Madhya Pradesh in 2012 but the Kerala high court struck down a ban citing that the food safety commissioner and the state didn’t have the right to take action as chewing tobacco is not a food product.