1.

GST authorities: Penalty for Tobacco cos not registering packing machines
Manufacturers of pan masala, gutka and similar tobacco products will have to pay a penalty
of up to Rs 1 lakh, if they fail to register their packing machinery with the GST authorities
with effect from April 1.
The move is intended to curb revenue leakage in the tobacco manufacturing sector.
The Finance Bill, 2024, introduced amendments to the Central GST Act, where a penalty of
Rs 1 lakh would be levied for every machine not registered.
Further, such non-compliant machinery would face the risk of seizure and confiscation in
certain cases.
Based on the recommendation of the GST Council, the tax authorities had last year notified a
special procedure for registration of machines by tobacco manufacturers.
The details of existing packing machines, newly-installed machines, along with the packing
capacity of these machines, have to be furnished in Form GST SRM-I. However, there was
no penalty notified for the same.

2. Australia detains alleged key player in North Korean tobacco smuggling scheme
after US request
A Chinese national has been quietly arrested and detained in Australia for 11 months at the
request of US authorities investigating an alleged tobacco smuggling conspiracy that
generated an estimated A$1.1bn (US$700m) in revenue to North Korea.
Jin Guanghua, 52, was arrested by the Australian federal police in Melbourne last March.
Described in US court documents as an Australian resident, Jin was kept in custody in
Melbourne for several months before being transferred to immigration detention while
awaiting extradition.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation alleges Jin and others conspired for about a decade to
supply tobacco to North Korea, which allowed the country to manufacture counterfeit
cigarettes that helped fund its nuclear and ballistic weapons program.
According to documents filed in a US federal court in Washington DC, it is alleged bank
accounts linked to front companies run by Jin and a co-conspirator were involved in more
than $128m (US$84m) in transfers as part of the scheme.
The tobacco they helped smuggle generated an estimated $1.1bn (US$700m) in revenue for
two companies owned by the North Korean military and government, the FBI has alleged.
 3. Accelerate tobacco, e-cigarette control measures: WHO to Southeast Asian
countries
The World Health Organization has called on countries in the Southeast Asian region to
intensify efforts to control tobacco and e-cigarette use, as tobacco consumption in the region
continues to be the highest globally despite considerable decline over the years and vaping is
on the rise.
The high use of tobacco has put the people at risk of life-threatening diseases such as cancer,
respiratory and heart ailments, Saima Wazed, regional director of WHO South-East Asia,
said.
While tobacco use in the WHO Southeast Asia region decreased from 68.9 per cent in 2000 to
around 43.7 per cent in 2022, an estimated 411 million people in the region still consume
tobacco, according to the latest trends released this year, she said.
The region has 280 million smokeless tobacco users, nearly 77 per cent of the global
smokeless tobacco users, and around 11 million adolescent tobacco users in the age group of
13-15 years, accounting for nearly 30 per cent of the global total.
The use of e-cigarettes, particularly among young people, is increasing in many countries,
with co-use of e-cigarettes and conventional cigarettes being common. Thailand, which has
been tracking e-cigarette use, reported a steep rise in e-cigarette use among school-aged
children of 13 to 15 years, from 3.3 per cent in 2015 to 17.6 per cent in 2022, Wazed said.

4. No drugs, tobacco and brawls in pubs, lounges, or face closure: CP

While granting relief to a hotel owner, the Madras High Court has recently held that there is
no prohibition under law for providing Hookah services in restaurants if same is run
conforming to the provisions of “Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products (Prohibition of
Advertisement and Regulation of Trade and Commerce, Production, supply and Distribution)
Act, 2003” and also “The Prohibition of Smoking in Public Places Rules, 2008”.
The court noted that as per law, a separate smoking area, i.e. a separately ventilated smoking
area with the board “Smoking Area” in English or one Indian language is a must. The
restaurants should further display the Health advisory message against smoking at the
entrance of the restaurant and that the entry of persons below 18 years should be prohibited.
Justice G Chandrasekharan thus directed the police authorities not to harass the restaurant
owner or interfere with him running the restaurants if the Hookah service was being run
according to law. If otherwise, the authorities had liberty to take appropriate legal action.