Bhubaneswar (Odisha) [India], January 23 : In a groundbreaking move to protect public health, the Government of Odisha has officially banned the manufacturing, processing, packaging, storage, transportation, distribution, or sale of all food products containing tobacco or nicotine as ingredients in the state. This includes items such as gutkha, pan masala, flavoured or scented food products or chewable food products.
The decision comes in line with directives from the Supreme Court and follows growing concerns about the harmful effects of tobacco use.
As part of the notification by the Health & Family Welfare department, Government of Odisha, all products containing tobacco and/or nicotine, whether packaged or unpackaged, sold individually or in a manner that allows consumers to mix them, or combined with any other food products, are now prohibited in the state of Odisha, regardless of the name under which they are marketed.
In a notification, the Odisha Government explained, "The wide usage of smokeless tobacco along with food items like pan masala, betel leaf, areca nut, slaked lime and other processed/scented/flavoured condiments endangers public health and is especially fatal to the health of children and young adults."
The notification cites the World Health Organisation (WHO) and the International Agency for Research on Cancer, which have classified chewing tobacco products as cancer-causing substances. "It causes dependence syndrome, severe impairment of the oral health, strongly associated with cancers of mouth, oesophagus, stomach, pancreatic, throat (pharynx and larynx) and renal, etc," the notification stated.
The ban also follows an 2nd Round of Global Adult Tobacco Survey that showed 42% of Odisha's adult population uses smokeless tobacco, nearly double the national average.
The Odisha Government's decision is also a response to a 2016 Supreme Court ruling, which found that some vendors were bypassing the gutkha ban by selling pan masala mixed with tobacco in separate packages. The court observed that these products were often sold together, allowing consumers to mix them.
"The Hon'ble Supreme Court of India in view of the above directed the concerned statutory authorities to comply with the above mandate of regulation 2.3.4 and directed the secretaries, health department of all the states and union territories to ensure total compliance of the ban imposed on manufacturing and sale of Gutkha and Pan Masala with tobacco and/or nicotine," the notification further read.
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