Defying SC order,illegal gutka business thrives….S Ahmed Ali
Mumbai: The racket,involving the smuggling of gutka pouches into Maharashtra from neighbouring states like Gujarat to be sold here at thrice the actual price,continues unabated in the thriving black market.
The blackmarketeers are making huge profits by selling the banned gutka and pan masala sachets by charging three times the actual prices.One popular brand of gutka,whose MRP is Rs 4,is being sold for Rs 13,and another brand,whose MRP is Rs 7,is sold for Rs 20.
The problem,officials said,was because the clampdown on factories manufacturing gutka pouches had little effect in other states.So pouches were flowing into Maharashtra unabated.The Supreme Court in February this year banned plastic gutka pouches.
A bench of two SC judges gave this judgment in response to the petition filed by the Indian Asthma Care Society to restrain gutka manufacturers from using plastic packaging material.Few manufacturers have already introduced gutka in paper packs but customers feel they dont maintain the taste like plastic pouches.. Though the ban on gutka plastic pouches came into effect in February,the Food and Drug Administration,the state excise department and the Mumbai police have turned a blind eye to gutka being sold openly every nook and corner of the city.