The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Govt. of India has notified new sets of specified health warnings for all tobacco product packs. Govt. has an amendment in the Cigarettes and other Tobacco Products (Packaging and Labelling) Rules, 2008 vide GSR 248(E) dated 13th April 2020 “The Cigarettes and other Tobacco Products (Packaging and Labelling) Amendment Rules, 2020”.
The amended Rules will be applicable w.e.f. 1st September 2020.
The new set of specified health warnings shall be valid for a period of twelve months following its commencement from 1st September, 2020. The picture will have description – cropped Tobacco Causes Painful Death. Other image which shall come into effect following the end of twelve months from the date of commencement of specified health warning of Image-1.
The said notification alongwith the soft or printable version of the specified health warnings in 19 languages are available on the websites www.mohfw.gov.in and www.ntcp.nhp.gov.in
Image -1 
Image -2
In view of the above, it is informed that; all tobacco products manufactured or imported or packaged on or after 1st September, 2020 shall display Image -1 and those manufactured or imported or packaged on or after 1st September, 2021 shall display Image-2.
Any person engaged directly or indirectly in the manufacture, production, supply, import or distribution of cigarettes or any tobacco products shall ensure that all tobacco product packages shall have the specified health warnings exactly as prescribed.
Govt. said that the violation of the above mentioned provision is a punishable offence with imprisonment or fine as prescribed in Section 20 of the Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products (Prohibition of Advertisement and Regulation of Trade and Commerce, Production, Supply and Distribution) Act, 2003.
The definition of “package” has been amended to be in conformity with the Act and the Rules made thereunder.
Prohibition of sale of cigarettes
Section- 6 of the Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products (Prohibition of Advertisement and Regulation of Trade and Commerce, Production, Supply and Distribution) Act, 2003 (COTPA, 2003) prohibits sale of cigarettes or any other tobacco products to any person who is under eighteen years of age; and in an area within a radius of one hundred yards of any educational institution.
The enforcement of provisions of COTPA, 2003 and Rules made thereunder is the responsibility of the States/Union Territories. As reported by States/Union Territories, violation of Section-6 is noticed.
The enforcement of provisions of COTPA, 2003 and Rules made thereunder is the responsibility of the States/Union Territories. As reported by States/Union Territories, violation of Section-6 is noticed.
Tobacco farming
The Department of Agriculture, Cooperation & Farmers Welfare (DAC&FW) had made budgetary allocations from 2015-16 onwards as Central share under Crop Diversification Programme (CDP), an ongoing sub-scheme of Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana (RKVY) to encourage tobacco growing farmers to shift to alternative crops/cropping system in tobacco growing states.
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