Ahmedabad:
On Day One of the gutka ban,the state government ensured wide-scale
raids on roadside kiosks,shops and pan outlets.Municipal corporations
and nagarpalikas all seemed to be trying to rack up impressive raid
figures.
In all,67,500 gutka sachets were seized by various urban local bodies,three criminal cases were registered for stocking gutka,and warnings were issued to 3,953 shops where gutka was found,across the state.
On how the authorities plan to deal with people in possession of gutka sachets,or caught consuming them,food and drugs control administration commissioner HG Koshia says,It purely depends on how much gutka the person is carrying.The officer can fine up to Rs 2 lakh but it will depend on the local food inspectors discretion.We do not plan to trivialize the ban by comparing it with liquor seizures during prohibition raids,but authorities will mostly warn consumers, says Koshia.
Interestingly,except for cities and small towns not much action was seen in villages and hamlets.This being an election year,we have been asked to go slow on villages as it may not be taken in the right spirit.Many livelihoods depend on the sale of gutka,pan masala and tobacco padikis, says a senior health department official in Gandhinagar.
Koshia says,For us to take criminal action against anyone,the person has to be carrying at least 400 sachets of gutka.We have registered three police complaints in all two in Surat district and one in Surendranagar.Those convicted will be liable for six months imprisonment and a Rs 5 lakh fine.We have designated food safety inspectors under the Food Safety and Standards Act to fine or seize any food articles that may be dangerous for public consumption, says Koshia.
AMC officials during a raid on a shop stocking gutka in Vadaj
In all,67,500 gutka sachets were seized by various urban local bodies,three criminal cases were registered for stocking gutka,and warnings were issued to 3,953 shops where gutka was found,across the state.
On how the authorities plan to deal with people in possession of gutka sachets,or caught consuming them,food and drugs control administration commissioner HG Koshia says,It purely depends on how much gutka the person is carrying.The officer can fine up to Rs 2 lakh but it will depend on the local food inspectors discretion.We do not plan to trivialize the ban by comparing it with liquor seizures during prohibition raids,but authorities will mostly warn consumers, says Koshia.
Interestingly,except for cities and small towns not much action was seen in villages and hamlets.This being an election year,we have been asked to go slow on villages as it may not be taken in the right spirit.Many livelihoods depend on the sale of gutka,pan masala and tobacco padikis, says a senior health department official in Gandhinagar.
Koshia says,For us to take criminal action against anyone,the person has to be carrying at least 400 sachets of gutka.We have registered three police complaints in all two in Surat district and one in Surendranagar.Those convicted will be liable for six months imprisonment and a Rs 5 lakh fine.We have designated food safety inspectors under the Food Safety and Standards Act to fine or seize any food articles that may be dangerous for public consumption, says Koshia.
AMC officials during a raid on a shop stocking gutka in Vadaj
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