TAD NewsDesk, New Delhi: The farmers body FAIFA demanded from the Prime Minister t put half on the proposed bill to amend the law in tobacco and cigarette products. They emphasized that this will bring complete unemployment to the country by means of the tobacco farmers.
The proposed bill COPTA (Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act) Amendment Bill 2020 will benefit the illicit cigarette business in the country. In addition, it will affect the legal cigarette business, FAIFA (Federation of All India Farmer Associations ) in the country. It claims to represent farmers and farm workers of commercial crops in the following states:
- Andhra Pradesh
- Telangana
- Karnataka
- Gujarat
General Secretary Murali Babu, FAIFA commented
“However, there still has been no talk or action taken regarding the actual problems that the tobacco farmers are going to face due to these proposed stringent laws.”
He added that FAIFA wants to highlight this loophole and explain to the Prime Minister the impact of the stringent laws upon the tobacco farmers.
FAIFA added that it is appealing to Modi “to recall the COTPA Amendment Bill as it will be a death knell for Indian FCV tobacco farmers”.
FAIFA President Javare Gowda said that it would really prove to be dangerous for the country as retailers and traders would not want to engage with the legal trade and the illicit trade will go on a rise.
FAIFA said in the last few years, the government has imposed “harsh tobacco regulations” such as increasing the size of pictorial warnings, imposing punitive taxation on cigarettes with the tax burden more than trebling since 2012-13 and has even withdrawn export benefits.
This act will impact the livelihoods of a lot of farmers as FAIFA is claiming and hence they are raising their concerns to the PM directly.
Source: Livemint
