Cigarette manufacturers including market leader ITC are restarting limited production with new packaging featuring 85 per cent graphic warnings that have been before the courts since their introduction in April, the Times of India said.

ITC in a statement to the Bombay Stock Exchange said it was phasing in production after halting production lines on 4 May after the Supreme Court ordered cigarette makers to comply with new packaging restrictions. Karnataka High Court has been tasked by the Supreme Court to hear tobacco industry complaints and issue a ruling within eight weeks, the Times reported.
The new tobacco-packaging warnings represent more than a three-fold increase from the pre-April standard; a 40 per cent pictorial warning on one major surface. The 85 per cent warnings must be printed on both major surfaces of cigarette packs, leaving manufacturers 15 per cent on each side for branding and related information.