GTC in trouble over low-tobacco cigarette

Mumbai-based tobacco maker GTC Industries is courting trouble again over its low-tobacco cigarette, Loe Tobac.

The company has been hauled up by the Food & Drug Administration (FDA) in Maharashtra and has asked the city police to take action against GTC for for violating advertisement rules of Cigarettes Act of 1975. This is the second time that the Loe Tobac brand is in the centre of controversy.

GTC had earlier dragged a Delhi-based website to court after it floated a website lowtobaclife.com that morphed as an anti-smoking website and advertised heavily in outdoor media using GTC's baseline 'high on life'.

In its packaging for the brand, Loe Tobac GTC has used words such as '25% less tobacco', 'high on life', and 'less hazardous' and so on.

The FDA, in its letter to Juhu Police Station, directed to take necessary action against the company under Section 6 (2) of Cigarettes Act. The action by the FDA is because of a complaint filed by a NGO, Crusade Against Tobacco led by activist Vincent Nazareth.

FDA Food Inspector S J Jambhale confirmed the development to Business Standard. GTC executives were not available for comments. Earlier, GTC had written to Juhu Police Station clarifying that 'no approval is required from the government for making a statement of fact - 25 per cent less tobacco.'.

However, Crusade Against Tobacco, through RTI Act has found out that the provision of regulating advertising of tobacco products under cigarettes has not been repealed.