KOLKATA: Manufacture, storage, and sale of chewing tobacco is banned in the state. But, this might surprise many as gutka, zarda, khaini and tobacco-laced pan masala are available everywhere in West Bengal.
As there was no visible enforcement on the ban for such product that was first notified in May 2013, the state health department has recently put up another notification. But with no steps being taken to implement the prohibition, health rights activists are questioning the government's seriousness.
Food Safety and Standards Authority of India issued a regulation in August 2011 banning chewing tobacco under the Food Safety and Regulation Act, 2011. Even before the Act came into existence, Sikkim had implemented a ban on these products. This Act provided teeth to Maharashtra government to ban gutka and other chewing tobacco products effectively. Other states followed suit though not necessarily as effectively as Maharashtra.
After drawing criticism from anti-tobacco organizations, the West Bengal government woke up in May last year to impose the ban for a year. But the prohibition remained only on paper. The second notification signed by state food safety commissioner Godhuli Mukjerjee on the health department website, which was posted on Sepetmeber 29 this year, is actually a continuation of the previous one.
"What ban? No one has ever cautioned us that selling zarda, gutka or pan masala is illegal," said a pan shopkeeper in Esplanade when TOI asked him about the ban.
Most of the people in the state, including the pan shopkeepers, are not even aware that such a ban exists. Apart from uploading the notification of the ban on the health department website, there has not been any visible action on the ground so far. .
"About 90% of oral cancer is caused by consumption of chewing tobacco. The ban in the state has to be implemented effectively. Along with stringent enforcement, the government needs to increase cancer awareness if it wants to make the ban successful," said oncologist Goutam Mukhopadhyay.
The Food Safety and Regulation Act, 2011, arms state governments to ban chewing tobacco products for a year. The ban can be renewed every year and is to be enforced by the state health department, the state food and drug administration and the local police.
Health department officials admitted the poor enforcement and blamed lack of manpower and co-ordination between the enforcing agencies for the failure of implementation of the ban.
"The effort has to be continuous and co-ordination has to be more effective to make the ban successful. We are sensitizing certain departments. Lack of manpower has been a major problem. Recently, the government created around 170 posts for food safety department. Once people are employed in these posts, we hope the implementation of the ban will become more visible," said state health secretary Malay Dey.
As there was no visible enforcement on the ban for such product that was first notified in May 2013, the state health department has recently put up another notification. But with no steps being taken to implement the prohibition, health rights activists are questioning the government's seriousness.
Food Safety and Standards Authority of India issued a regulation in August 2011 banning chewing tobacco under the Food Safety and Regulation Act, 2011. Even before the Act came into existence, Sikkim had implemented a ban on these products. This Act provided teeth to Maharashtra government to ban gutka and other chewing tobacco products effectively. Other states followed suit though not necessarily as effectively as Maharashtra.
After drawing criticism from anti-tobacco organizations, the West Bengal government woke up in May last year to impose the ban for a year. But the prohibition remained only on paper. The second notification signed by state food safety commissioner Godhuli Mukjerjee on the health department website, which was posted on Sepetmeber 29 this year, is actually a continuation of the previous one.
"What ban? No one has ever cautioned us that selling zarda, gutka or pan masala is illegal," said a pan shopkeeper in Esplanade when TOI asked him about the ban.
Most of the people in the state, including the pan shopkeepers, are not even aware that such a ban exists. Apart from uploading the notification of the ban on the health department website, there has not been any visible action on the ground so far. .
"About 90% of oral cancer is caused by consumption of chewing tobacco. The ban in the state has to be implemented effectively. Along with stringent enforcement, the government needs to increase cancer awareness if it wants to make the ban successful," said oncologist Goutam Mukhopadhyay.
The Food Safety and Regulation Act, 2011, arms state governments to ban chewing tobacco products for a year. The ban can be renewed every year and is to be enforced by the state health department, the state food and drug administration and the local police.
Health department officials admitted the poor enforcement and blamed lack of manpower and co-ordination between the enforcing agencies for the failure of implementation of the ban.
"The effort has to be continuous and co-ordination has to be more effective to make the ban successful. We are sensitizing certain departments. Lack of manpower has been a major problem. Recently, the government created around 170 posts for food safety department. Once people are employed in these posts, we hope the implementation of the ban will become more visible," said state health secretary Malay Dey.
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