New Delhi: Health Minister Harsh Vardhan has written to Finance Minister Arun Jaitley asking him to impose a steep uniform hike of Rs 3.5 per cigarette so as to make their cost prohibitive and discourage consumption.
Vardhan said the number of male smokers in the country has increased to 105 million from 83 million in the last decade and argued their ill-effects on health force over 15 million people into poverty every year.
The more expensive they become, the better it is for all of us. Their price should be hiked. They should become rare, Vardhan said.
While the hike in cigarette price would be borne mostly by the upper income class the reduction in mortality would benefit the low-income population, he said.
He has also sought regulation of bidi industry on an urgent basis, saying it has enjoyed several exemptions which have caused it to grow even as the condition of bidi roller has deteriorated further.
Let me add that higher tobacco tax incurs no or only minimal economic harm, including no net loss of jobs and minimal harm to current bidi workers, he said Jaitley.
The Finance Minister’s “modest” action, he said, would save millions of lives and would be one of the most important actions the government can take to “secure better health and reduce poverty.
Bureau Report
Leave a Reply