The ban on storage and sale of gutkha and pan masala should not remain as a mere notification, it should be implemented in letter and spirit,said Communist Party of India state secretary R Viswanathan
Addressing reporters here on Wednesday, the CPI leader welcomed the prohibition of gutkha and pan masala for a period of one year and said the commissioner of food safety, Ragesh Chandra, should ensure that the ban on the products is implemented right from the Chief Secretariat of Puducherry.
Viswanathan charged that some of the top officials of the administration, including IAS officers, were using the banned products in the secretariat.
Book on statehood
Viswanathan said Assembly Speaker V Sabapathy would release a book on ‘Need of Statehood for Puducherry and solution’ on June 30.
After speaking to a panel of experts, retired Commercial Tax Officer Naveen Dhanaraman and Pondicherry University lecturer P S Velmurugan penned the book. Viswanathan said copies of the book, in English and Tamil, would be submitted to the President, Prime Minister, Congress chairperson Sonia Gandhi and other leaders to to seek their support for Statehood for Puducherry.