Government sources said that the Tobacco Board is laying the groundwork for the reduction of tobacco cultivation while a detailed package is being worked out to provide compensation to farmers.
The Commerce Ministry has mooted a proposal to the Finance Ministry to levy a tax of INR 0.05 (USD 0.0013) per cigarette to raise the funds required to shift farmers away from tobacco cultivation.
The move follows plans by Health Minister Anbumani Ramdoss to discourage tobacco consumption through ominous pictorial warnings on packs of tobacco products and a ban on smoking scenes in movies. The government has already made smoking in public places a punishable offence.
The Tobacco Board, under the supervision of the Commerce Ministry, was to frame an action plan for reducing tobacco cultivation by 50 per cent in 10 to 15 years after signing the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control of the World Health Organisation in 2003. India has three million tobacco growers, mostly in the states of Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka. (pi)