Indian Lok Sabha passed a bill that provides for pictorial warning on tobacco products with the option of displaying skull and cross bones on its packets.
The controversial bill, which was moved for consideration and passing by Indian Minister of State for Health Panabaka Lakshmi, was passed by voice vote without any discussion amid an uproar created by Opposition NDA over its demand for setting up a Joint Parliamentary Committee to look into the Indo-US nuclear deal.
The amendment was introduced in the sub section (1) of section 7 of the Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products (Prohibition of Advertisement and Regulation of Trade and Commerce, Production, Supply and Distribution) Act, 2003.
The 2003 bill was enacted mainly for taking effective steps to discourage the use of tobacco and tobacco products so as to protect public health.
As objections were raised from several MPs and political parties about making display of skull and cross bones mandatory in all tobacco products, especially bidi, government had decided to make pictorial warning optional rather than mandatory on the grounds that it hurt “religious sentiments expressed by certain sections of society”.
As per sub section (1) of section 7 of the Act, no person shall, directly or indirectly produce, supply or distribute cigarette or any other tobacco products unless every package of cigarettes or any other tobacco products produced, supplied or distributed by him bears thereon, or on its label, the specified health warning.