Banned on tobacco products in West Bengal
The West Bengal government declared a banned on tobacco products for one year.
On Tuesday West Bengal government declared a ban on tobacco-related products gutkha, pan masala for at least one year. The government took this decision by keeping the safety of the people of the state. The decision will came into effect on November 7, 2021, according to the sources.
In 2019, Mamata Banerjee banned the consumption of gutkha, betel spice, and other tobacco-related products for the first time. Also, the West Bengal government banned khaini, gutkha, and pan masala in 2013, as per the sources. Tapan K Rudra, the commissioner of food safety, issued a notification of the ban on tobacco-related products. It stated, “As per regulation 2.3.4 of the food safety and standards (prohibition restriction on sales) Regulation 2011 bans the sale of articles of food in which tobacco and nicotine used as ingredients, as they may be harmful to health”.
According to the sources, the state government earns a lot of tax from selling tobacco-related products. Also, last month Haryana government banned the use of tobacco-related products.
Nevertheless, Assam was the first state that bans tobacco last year. After that, Andhra Pradesh, Goa, Telangana, Jammu and Kashmir, Manipur, Mizoram, Maharashtra, Kerala, and Andhra Pradesh states banned smokeless tobacco. Also, in January, Punjab was the first state to ban the sale of cigarettes. As per the sources, Guthka is a food product under the new law, Food Safety and Regulation (Prohibition) Act 2011, and a food product with harmful ingredients can be banned.
