Cigarettes, cigars and pipe tobacco may be more expensive in the city of Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) to initiate measures to hike octroi duties on these products up to 15% from the current 8%.
“PMC may charge more octroi on cigarettes, but the state must seek permission for the same. In Maharashtra, Nagpur civic body takes 15% octroi on tobacco products and the government gave them special permission. If the PMC wants to increase octroi, weshould follow the same procedure and seek a special permit from the state. corporators demand hike octroi is workable, “said the head of octroi Hemant Nikam, answering a discussion of the tax structure of the body at the General Meeting on Wednesday.
PMC earned a whopping Rs 19.52 crore in the octroi from the sale of cigarettes this year, compared to 17.84 lakh rupees a year earlier. This is when the city through the chest Research Foundation is concerned that raising the level of pollution pose a risk of falling into smokers with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). If you enter 15% of PMC octroi from cigarettes, cigars and pipe tobacco, octroi revenue will grow by about 15 lakh rupees per year.
At the meeting, GB, all party corporators demanded that civil government is to increase octroi on cigarettes, cigars and pipe tobacco are subject to increase the number of smokers in the city.
MNS corporator Rajendra Babu alias Wagaskar said that the PMC should seek information from the Nagpur Municipal Corporation, as a heavy levy octroi charges on tobacco and forward a similar proposal to the government. “This will help to curb the growth in the number of smokers, and to help the civilian body to make more money. Instead of increasing the octroi on essential commodities like food grain, PMC should octroi hike on tobacco products,” said Wagaskar. Newly-elected women representatives supported Wagaskar and said that the civil administration should immediately hike octroi.
Leader of the House and NCP corporator Subhash Jagtap supported the demand, and said: “We unanimously approve campaign. But we must follow in order to seek state and nod. We will also increase octroi on imported liquor in the city.”
Sandeep Salvi, director of the city, based on chest Research Foundation, referring to that said that sales of cigarettes in the city is cause for concern, and all possible measures should be taken by the Government and local authority to restrict smoking. He added that smoking is major environmental risk factors for the development of COPD.Other factors, such as occupational exposures, air pollution and exposure to secondhand tobacco smoke contribute to conditions.
Air pollution, both indoors and outdoors, has been recognized over the past few decades, as a serious threat to the health and pulmonary significant contribution to COPD. Various studies over the past few years have put in the list of Pune’s most polluted cities in the country. However, PMC failed to develop a comprehensive policy for assessment of pollution and its impact on citizens.
Pankaj Chaturvedi, associate professor, head and neck of Tata Memorial Hospital, Mumbai, said that the structure of taxation on tobacco products that are directly related to the health of citizens. “India is committed to the United Nations to reduce tobacco use and has signed an agreement with the World Health Organization, which guarantees up to 70% of taxes on tobacco products. Union Government has taken a slight increase in tobacco taxes in the budget,” he said, adding that efforts local authorities will undoubtedly help to curb smoking.
