Bhubaneswar: Odisha government on Tuesday announced a state-wide ban on the manufacture, sale and use of guthka and chewing tobacco containing nicotine.
"I appeal to people to cooperate with the state government to make Odisha a tobacco-free state," Health and Family Welfare Minister Damodar Rout said.
A notification in this regard will be issued in a day or two, he added.
Noting that Odisha was not the only state where government imposed such a ban, Rout said the Supreme Court and different High Courts had earlier directed the states to slap such a ban as the nicotine-contained chewing masalas triggered diseases like cancer.
However, the minister said, the government has not so far taken any decision on use of cigarette though smoking in public places is banned.
Odisha is the 15th state in the country to ban 'gutkha'.While union territory Chandigarh has effected a ban on it, Kerala banned pan masala and gutkha containing tobacco under the Food Safety and Standards (Prohibition and Restriction on Sales) Regulation, 2011.
The states which have so far banned gutkha include Madhya Pradesh, Kerala, Bihar, Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Haryana, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Mizoram, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Chandigarh, Punjab and Goa.
"I appeal to people to cooperate with the state government to make Odisha a tobacco-free state," Health and Family Welfare Minister Damodar Rout said.
A notification in this regard will be issued in a day or two, he added.
However, the minister said, the government has not so far taken any decision on use of cigarette though smoking in public places is banned.
Advertisement
The states which have so far banned gutkha include Madhya Pradesh, Kerala, Bihar, Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Haryana, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Mizoram, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Chandigarh, Punjab and Goa.
Advertisement
COMMENTS
Advertisement
Centre Won't Liberalise Foreign Direct Investment In Tobacco Sector: Minister Common Environmental Toxins, Like Nicotine, Linked To Depressive Symptoms: Study Odisha Chief Minister-Elect Mohan Majhi Stakes Claim To Form Government Windows Computers Lead To 'Blue Screen Of Death' Due To CrowdStrike Error Massive Worldwide Microsoft Outage: Flights, Markets, Stock Exchange Down Microsoft 'Blue Screen Of Death' Outage: Full List Of Services Hit In India Study Abroad: Top 10 Management Universities In United Kingdom "Reason Identified, Updates Released": India On Massive Microsoft Outage UPSC Cracks Down, Says Puja Khedkar Faked Identity, Parents' Name, Address Track Latest News Live on NDTV.com and get news updates from India and around the world.