Cigarette and beedi packets was immoral

KARIMNAGAR: Bharatiya Janata Party State president Bandaru Dattatreya said that the Central Government’s decision to print pictures of scorpion and diseased lung on the cigarette and beedi packets was immoral.

Speaking to mediapersons after participating in the district post-poll review meet here today, he maintained that the UPA Government wisely kept the decision in pending till the elections were got over. Had it been introduced before elections, the results would have been different, he averred. He demanded Chief Minister YS Rajasekhara Reddy to pressure the UPA government to stick to what he assured beedi workers before the general elections regarding pictorial warnings. Until and unless the Government rolls back its decision we would continue to intensify our agitation, Dattatreya said. The BJP leader maintained that the chief minister should take special interest in the issue as lakhs of people in particular women depending on rolling beedies would be rendered job less.
As for ration cards, he found fault with the State Government’s decision to review faulty ration cards and cancel the bogus ones and sought to know as to how many BPL families were present in the State.
Coming to elections, he blamed that the poor performance of the left parties benefited the Congress in coming to power.
He opined that the utter failure of the Grand Alliance in the State and splitting of votes benefitted the Congress and said that the party’s stand on Telangana would remain unchanged.
Maintaining that BJP has achieved increase in its vote bank in the just-concluded elections, he said that the party was mulling strengthening the party by rejuvenating cadres at the grassroot level. Party secretary NVSS Prasad and Janga Reddy and others were present on the occasion.

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health warnings

Has govt delayed health warnings on cigarette packs to control population?

epeated dithering by UPA government in introducing pictorial signs and health warnings on cigarette packets invited a stinging query
from the Supreme Court on Monday: "Is the government doing this to control rapidly increasing population?"

Appearing for NGO `Health for Millions', senior advocate Indira Jaising told a Bench comprising Justices B N Agrawal and G S Singhvi that the government had succumbed to the pressure exerted by the tobacco lobby and repeatedly postponed implementation of its decision on pictorial warnings.

She asked how the government, which has ministers who own tobacco plantations, could take a decision that was contrary to their interests? Jaising alleged that even the pictorial sign, which was to be `skull and bones' -- internationally understood to depict danger — had been diluted to `scorpion' which meant nothing for the common man. She reeled out statistics about large number of deaths caused every day due to use of tobacco in the form of cigarettes, beedis and chewing tobacco.

However, additional solicitor general Gopal Subramaniam said the government had taken a decision to introduce pictorial signs and health warnings on tobacco packs from May 31, 2009 and the health ministry was coordinating with other ministries for the same.

Before adjourning the case to April 30, the Bench asked Subramaniam: "Has the government diluted the pictorial sign and deferred implementation to control burgeoning population?"


source:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/