“The manufacture, storage, distribution, or sale of tobacco which is either flavoured, scented or mixed and whether going by the name or form of gutka, pan, masala, flavoured/scented tobacco, kharra, or otherwise form of tobacco whether packaged or unpackaged and/or sold as one product, or though packaged as separate products, sold or distributed in China Automobile Tubing Suppliers such manner so as to easily facilitate mixing by the consumer is prohibited for a period of one year,” the notification said. “The selling, transportation and manufacturing of chewing tobacco in any form, whether packed, unpacked or scented has been banned from today,” city health minister Satyendar Jain said.

“The AAP government had earlier issued the notification last year. The AAP government on Friday extended the ban on sale, purchase and storage of all forms of chewable tobacco for a year in the national capital. A notification issued by the food and safety department said the ban will also be imposed on all forms of unpackaged products of chewable tobacco, including gutka, pan masala, khaini and zarda.Despite the existing ban on these products, both gutka and tobacco are sold in the city as a large number of shopkeepers are reportedly not aware about any such ban.”A senior officer said a notification was issued by the Delhi government in September, 2012, in pursuance of a series of directions from the Supreme Court for a ban on gutka in the city. Since the term gutka was used in that notification, tobacco retailers started selling the components of gutka (betel nut and raw tobacco) in separate pouches, thus defeating the purpose behind the ban.

Mr Jain said there was nothing new in the notification. The matter is sub-judice in the court. The AAP government on Friday extended the ban on sale, purchase and storage of all forms of chewable tobacco for a year in the national capital.. The current notification is the extension of the earlier issued notification.The health department had, therefore, come up with a new proposal for banning all raw chewable tobacco products in Delhi which was challenged in the high court and the matter is still sub-judice