Anti-Tobacco Forum welcomes higher GST on cigarettes, opposes lower levy on beedis
Mysuru: The Anti-Tobacco Forum (ATF), Mysuru, has supported the Centre’s move to raise Goods and Services Tax (GST) on cigarettes, cigars, and nicotine-based substitutes from 28 per cent to 40 per cent, but voiced concern over the reduction of GST on beedis from 28 per cent to 18 per cent, as reported by The Hindu.
ATF convenor Vasanthkumar Mysoremath said the higher taxation on cigarettes and related products was a positive step, but termed the relief granted to beedis as “uncalled for.” He noted that some countries impose taxes as high as 100 per cent to curb tobacco consumption and urged the government to align its tax policy with the World Health Organisation’s Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC).
“Uniformly high taxation across all tobacco products would act as a deterrent, making addiction economically unviable,” Mysoremath said, warning that tobacco use is linked to rising cases of non-communicable diseases among youth.
Citing the Global Adult Tobacco Survey (GATS), which states that of the estimated 274.9 million users, 163.7 million use smokeless tobacco, 68.9 million smoke tobacco, and 42.3 million use both, he stated that more than 35% of Indian people use tobacco in some form.
The forum has urged the Centre to reconsider its decision on beedis and adopt stronger fiscal measures to reduce overall tobacco consumption.
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West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee moves SC against SIR
New Delhi (PTI): West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has filed a petition in the Supreme Court against the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the electoral rolls in the state, sources said on Sunday.
The petition names the Election Commission (EC) and the chief electoral officer of West Bengal as respondents. It was filed before the apex court on January 28, the sources said.
Banerjee arrived in Delhi on Sunday. She is scheduled to meet Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar at 4 pm on Monday to discuss the ongoing SIR exercise in West Bengal. The Trinamool Congress (TMC) supremo would be accompanied by a delegation of party leaders.
She is also likely to meet party MPs in the Parliament House on Monday.
Talking to reporters at the Kolkata airport before leaving for the national capital, Banerjee claimed that the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) at the Centre is resorting to the SIR exercise because it is certain of its imminent defeat in the West Bengal Assembly polls, due in a few months, and said the saffron party should contest the election politically and democratically.
The West Bengal chief minister has written several letters to the CEC, raising concerns over the conduct of the exercise.
In her most recent letter to the CEC on January 31, she alleged that the methodology and approach of the exercise went beyond the provisions of the Representation of the People Act and the relevant rules, causing "immense inconvenience and agony" to citizens.
Earlier, TMC leaders, including Rajya Sabha MPs Derek O'Brien and Dola Sen, had moved the apex court, challenging certain aspects of how the SIR is being carried out in West Bengal.
