INDIAN CIGARETTE TAXATION FORCES CONSUMERS TO CHOOSE ALTERNATIVE TOBACCO PRODUCTS
August 1st, 2008
BY RAGHAVENDRA VERMA
THE INDIAN cigarette industry is losing sales to manufacturers of other tobacco products due to a disproportionately high rate of taxation on cigarettes, says ITC, the Calcutta-based company that controls 80% of the country's cigarette market.
"Unlike the rest of the world, the consumption of cigarettes in India is less than 14% of the total tobacco consumption and 86% is constituted by bidis (tobacco rolled in temburini leaf) and chewing tobacco," a company spokesperson told World Tobacco.
The situation has been getting worse ...
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