July 12, 2007
News - Meeting on tobacco inconclusive
GoM will meet shortly, says Anbumani Ramadoss
NEW DELHI: The Group of Ministers (GoM), set up to decide on the issue of having pictorial warnings on tobacco products, met here on Wednesday, but could not reach any conclusion.
Speaking to reporters, Health Minister Anbumani Ramadoss said several issues were raised during the two-hour meeting, such as apprehensions of loss of jobs and religious sentiments over the proposed warning. “We are going to meet again shortly … perhaps within this month,” he said.
The meeting was chaired by External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee, and attended by Union Ministers Kamal Nath, Priyaranjan Das Munsi, Jaipal Reddy and Oscar Fernandes.
The main issue was a proposal by the Health Ministry to display the “skull and crossbones” symbol on the packets of all tobacco products as a warning about the ill-effects of tobacco use.
The warning was approved by a Parliament sub-committee in 2003, and was scheduled to come into effect from last month. It has been kept in abeyance following opposition, in particular from the beedi industry. Several parties and leaders from Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka, which have a large beedi industry, have given representations to the Government against the warning.
Stringent steps
Pointing out that studies had shown that about 1 million cases of cancer were diagnosed every year and that nearly half of cancer cases in men were tobacco-related, Dr. Ramadoss said countries across the world were taking stringent steps to curb tobacco consumption, following the adoption of an international framework convention.
The United Kingdom, for instance, had banned smoking in workplaces and public places and so had Ireland.
online available at- http://www.hindu.com/2007/07/12/stories/2007071253130900.htm
