Sushil Kumar Modi writes to states to increase tax on tobacco products

PATNA: Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi today wrote to finance minister of all states to take a cue from Bihar and increase tax on tobacco products which has killed lakhs of people across the country.

Modi, who is the also finance minister of Bihar, had presented the budget for the state for 2013-14 yesterday in which he proposed substantial increase in prices of cigarettes and tobacco products.

Modi e said nearly 10 lakh people died due to consumption of tobacco products in the country every year.

The Bihar Deputy CM, who is also chairman of the empowered committee of finance ministers on Goods and Services Tax and who had attended a global convention against tobacco in the US late last year, said according to an estimate of 'Global Adult Tobacco Survey India', nearly 28 crore people consumed tobacco products in different forms.

India has the maximum people suffering from mouth cancer in the world with 75,000-80,000 new cases every year.

He urged his counterparts in other states to control the menace of the tobacco products by making it dearer by increasing tax on them.

Modi said that some state governments like Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan had increased VAT on tobacco products by 50 per cent.