After e-cigarettes, Raj govt bans pan masala and flavoured supari

Jaipur: Shortly after imposing a ban on e-cigarettes, the Rajasthan government on Wednesday banned the sale of pan masala and flavored supari containing magnesium carbonate, nicotine, tobacco or mineral oil on the occasion of Gandhi Jayanti.

According to an order issued by the State Government, the production, storage, distribution and sale of these products have been banned with immediate effect. Rajasthan is the third state in the country to ban these products after Maharashtra and Bihar. The government has already banned tobacco-mixed gutkha and e-cigarettes.

According to the office order issued by the state government, this ban has been imposed under the provisions of the Food Safety and Standards (Prohibition and Restriction of Sales) Regulations, 2011.

The Congress had announced in its manifesto that it would ban these projects if voted to power. It was also mentioned in the budget 2019-20.

Rajasthan medical and health minister Raghu Sharma said that the decision to ban pan masala and flavoured supari has been taken to dissuade youths from falling into the trap of drug addiction. He said that a complete ban on these products has been imposed under the Food Safety and Standards Act.

He also said that the health department teams will take legal action against people who are found involved in the sale and distribution of these products even after the ban.