While the ban on gutka and pan masala came into effect in July 2012, several bodies seem oblivious to its implementation. For instance, the octroi department of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation has been allowing consignments of gutka inside Mumbai by collecting octroi on the tax invoices/bills of the same. dna has documentary evidence of some of these tax invoices that were issued this year.
The BMC’s octroi department gave their nod to tax invoices for at least four consignments of gutka that were brought into the city in January, May, July and August this year.
Only recently, the Mumbai Central GRP had registered a case against BMC personnel for allowing gutka inside Mumbai, flouting the ban. After this, some civic body employees had approached the Mumbai sessions court for anticipatory bail, which was rejected.
Ideally, the octroi department should inform the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as soon as they catch a consignment of gutka. The products are then seized and the people carrying them are booked under the relevant sections of the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006.
Mahesh Zagade, FDA commissioner, said, “I have written to all the authorities concerned to help us in implementing the tobacco ban. It is absolutely wrong on the BMC’s part to allow such consignments into the city and the authorities should take this seriously.”
A senior civic official said, “We have initiated an inquiry into the matter to ascertain whether the inspector concerned did it with malafide intentions or it was a genuine mistake.” The state government’s ban on the production and sale of gutka was estimated to have caused a loss of almost Rs100 crore. The government claimed that the losses incurred were secondary and their primary focus was to safeguard the citizens from cancer and other gutka-induced health issues.
However, it is common knowledge that gutka is still sold at several places in the city at exorbitant rates.
The BMC’s octroi department gave their nod to tax invoices for at least four consignments of gutka that were brought into the city in January, May, July and August this year.
Only recently, the Mumbai Central GRP had registered a case against BMC personnel for allowing gutka inside Mumbai, flouting the ban. After this, some civic body employees had approached the Mumbai sessions court for anticipatory bail, which was rejected.
Ideally, the octroi department should inform the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as soon as they catch a consignment of gutka. The products are then seized and the people carrying them are booked under the relevant sections of the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006.
Mahesh Zagade, FDA commissioner, said, “I have written to all the authorities concerned to help us in implementing the tobacco ban. It is absolutely wrong on the BMC’s part to allow such consignments into the city and the authorities should take this seriously.”
A senior civic official said, “We have initiated an inquiry into the matter to ascertain whether the inspector concerned did it with malafide intentions or it was a genuine mistake.” The state government’s ban on the production and sale of gutka was estimated to have caused a loss of almost Rs100 crore. The government claimed that the losses incurred were secondary and their primary focus was to safeguard the citizens from cancer and other gutka-induced health issues.
However, it is common knowledge that gutka is still sold at several places in the city at exorbitant rates.
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