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Government of India
Ministry of Finance
Department of Revenue
Central Board of Excise & Customs
(Anti-Smuggling Unit)
Circular No.
27/2017- Customs
New Delhi, dated the 05th July, 2017
To,
All Principal Chief Commissioners/ Chief Commissioners of
Customs/Customs (Preventive),
All Principal Chief Commissioners/ Chief
Commissioners of Customs & Central Excise.
All Principal Directors General /
Directors General of CBEC.
All Principal Commissioners/Commissioners of
Customs / Customs (Prey).
All Principal Commissioners/Commissioners of
Customs (Appeals).
All Principal Commissioners/Commissioners of Customs &
Central Excise.
All Principal Commissioners/Commissioners of Customs &
Central Excise. (Appeals).
Webmaster, CBEC
Subject: Disposal of seized/confiscated cigarettes of foreign origin
vis-a-vis provisions of the Cigarettes and other Tobacco products (Packaging and
Labelling) Rules, 2008.
Madam/Sir,
I am directed to refer to Board’s
Circular No. 09/2017- Customs dated
29th March, 2017 on the above mentioned subject. Guidelines for disposal of
seized/confiscated cigarettes were prescribed by the said Circular, which inter
alia, emphasised the need to ensure compliance of health warnings (pictorial as
well as textual) mandated by the Cigarettes and other Tobacco Products
(Prohibition of Advertisement and Regulation of Trade and Commerce, Production,
Supply and Distribution Act, 2003 (COTPA 2003)) and the Rules made thereunder.
2. Attention is also invited to this office letter of even no. dated
05th April, 2017 vide which concerted action against illicitly imported cigarettes
(specified under Section 123 of the Customs Act, 1962 vide Notification
No.
103/2016- Customs (N.T.) dated 25th July, 2016) was called for and vide which it was
requested to strictly adhere to the guidelines contained in the aforesaid
Board’s
Circular No. 09/2017- Customs dated 29th March, 2017 and to ensure compliance
of the statutory conditions by the disposal sections before releasing such
seized/confiscated cigarettes.
3. The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoH&FW) vide Notification GSR
727 (E) dated 15th Oct, 2014 notified the Cigarettes and other Tobacco Products
(Packaging and Labelling) Amendment Rules, 2014, which came into effect from
01.04.2016 [G.S.R. 739 (E) dated 24th Sep, 2015]. The said Rules, inter alia,
amended the existing health warning specifications and prescribed mandatory
display of stringent health warnings in the specified format, colours,
resolution, font, language, etc. on both sides of the tobacco product packages
covering 85% of the principal display area. Further, as per the said Rules,
during the rotation period of twenty-four months, two images of specified health
warnings as notified in the Schedule, shall be displayed on all tobacco product
packages and each of the images shall appear consecutively on the package with
an interregnum period of twelve months.
4. Therefore, on completion of a period of twelve months from the 01st Apr, 2016,
the MoH&FW vide Notification GSR 292 (E) dated 24.03.2017 has notified the
Cigarettes and other Tobacco Products (Packaging and Labelling) Amendment Rules,
2017 (effective from 01st Apr, 2017) which prescribes that “the date of coming into
effect of the second image (image2) of specified health warning shall be for all
tobacco products manufactured after the completion of twelve months from the 1st
day of April, 2016”. Thus, in terms of the said Rules, all tobacco products
manufactured/imported on or after 1st April 2017 shall display the second image
of specified health warnings. In this regard, the MoH&FW has also issued a
Public Notice for information to the stakeholders (copy enclosed).
5. Since seized/confiscated cigarettes, after their disposal, shall also be
available for sale in the market, it is mandatory that the changes in the health
warnings specified by the aforesaid COTP Amendment Rules, 2017, effective from
01st April, 2017, shall also be applicable to them.
6. In view of the above, it is requested that in addition to the existing
statutory requirements, compliance of the amendments in health warning
specifications prescribed by the COTP Rules, 2017 may also be ensured before
disposal of seized/confiscated cigarettes.
7. The Chief Commissioners/Directors General are requested to circulate the
amended guidelines to all the formations under their charge. Difficulties, if
any, in implementation of the aforesaid guidelines may be brought to the notice
of the Board.
Encl: As above
(A.C. Mallick)
Under Secretary to the Government of India
[F. No.
71I/07/2003-Cus (AS)]
ATTENTION!
Tobacco Product Manufacturers, Distributors and Retailers!
The Central Government has notified the new specified health warnings vide
GSR 727 (E) of Gazette Notification dated 15th October, 2014 and issued
notification G.S.R. No. 739 (E) dated 24th September, 2015 for mandatory display
of new specified health warnings covering 85% of the principal display area on
all tobacco product packages, from 1st April, 2016.
As per the Rules, during the rotation period of twenty four months, two
images of specified health warning as notified in the Schedule, shall be
displayed on all tobacco product packages and each of the image shall appear
consecutively on the package with an interregnum period of 12 months.
As per the Rules, during the rotation period of twenty four months, two
images of specified health warning as notified in the Schedule, shall be
displayed on all tobacco product packages and each of the image shall appear
consecutively on the package with an interregnum period of 12 months.
Any person engaged directly or indirectly in the production, supply, import
or distribution of cigarettes or any other tobacco products shall ensure that
all tobacco product packages shall have specified health warnings as prescribed.
Violation of the above mentioned provision is a punishable offence with
imprisonment or fine as prescribed in Section 20 of the Cigarettes and Other
Tobacco Products (Prohibition of Advertisement and Regulation of Trade and
Commerce, Production, Supply and Distribution) Act, 2003.
Ministry of Health
& Family Welfare
Government of India
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