Govt urged to curb illegal tobacco business

PESHAWAR: Urging the government to take necessary steps to curb the menace of illicit trade, Anjuman Kashtkaran and Tobacco, Hazara Division, has said that the growing illegal tobacco business affect the crop output in the country.
Through a statement issued here on Thursday, Rustam Khan Swati, President Anjuman Kashtkaran and Tobacco, Hazara Division, said that the growth of smuggled cigarettes was a threat to farmers’ livelihood.
Citing a recently-published report, he claimed that the illegal trade was growing at an alarming rate ranging from 23 to 25 percent of total tobacco market. “This growth has resulted in damaging the livelihood of hundreds of thousands of people dependent on the tobacco crops and business in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa,” he added.
He stressed that tobacco was the only choice for farmers in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to earn decent money. However, exponential growth in illegal trade would deprive them of their earnings, he maintained.He urged the government to take necessary steps to curb the menace and save the farmers from crisis.