PAAN MASALA : BECOMING A SCOURGE IN NEPAL

Paan Masala is a mixture of areca nut powder, lime, betel nut, catechu and
permitted flavours and spices. Gutka contains tobacco in addition to these
ingredients. Consumers chew them as mouth fresheners and then get habituated
to them, especially gutka.

Packaged in cheap, attractive pouches they are aggressively marketed and
retailed from paan shops and general stores in all parts of the country.
Their consumption is especially high among Pakistani, Bangladeshi and
Indian immigrants to the UK, USA, Canada and middle east and South Africa,
and their popularity cuts through all age groups and income levels in both
urban and rural sectors.

In the absence of social awareness, the health hazards posed by their
consumption in Nepal is on the rise. The exact data on imports from India
is not available, however, from the increasing number of shops retailing
the substances, and their reach into remote regions, it can be deduced that
this menace is gripping Nepal in the way it has already gripped India.

Harmful effects: Once a consumer is hooked to paan masala/gutka, the
frequency of consumption rises--six pouches a day is not uncommon. Giving
up the habit results in withdrawal symptoms such as irritation, craving,
etc. The nicotine present in gutka cultivates habit. Deprived of it, the
user suffers from constipation, restlessness and depression. The effects of
this substance is both physiological as well as psychological.

- -- Betel nuts, tobacco, lime and catechu damage the sensitive mucosa in the
mouth, causing irritation and microtrauma.

- -- The phenol in betel nuts have a caustic-burning effect, destroying the
mucosa and causing oral ulcers. Betel nuts also contain tannins which act
as astringents, precipitating protein and damaging the mucosa.

- -- Lime in the gutka causes burns in the eyes that over time results in
complete loss of vision. Chemicals contained in paan masala/gutka are toxic
as well.

- -- Chewing tobacco is an established cause of cancer of oral cavities,
pharynx and oesophagus. It has been proved that the mixture of tobacco,
areca nut, lime, camphor and cloves is carcinogenic. Nineteen out of 20
popular paan masala brands contain inhibitors which can mutate ordinary
human cells into uncontrollable cancer cells. Further, it was found that
the use of paan masala/gutka for just 2-7 years led to several cases of
oral submucous fibrosis, a pre-malignancy condition. The majority of these
patients are between 20 and 30 years of age. There has been increased
incidence of OSP/oral cancer among young because of the easy availability
and consumption of gutka by teenagers.

- -- Gutka, it is suspected, causes gingivitis, (the inflammation and
recession of gums) haunoplania and erythroplania (pustules on the inner
lining). The high content of fluorides in paan masala/gutka affects the
teeth.

- -- Chewing tobacco is also suspected to play an active role in coronary
diseases as it narrows the blood vessel.

Studies conducted over the years by reputed institutions such as the WHO,
John Hopkins University, US, Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, India,
National Institute of Nutrition, India, Cancer Research Institute, Mumbai,
India, reveal that 90 percent of oral cancers are caused by chewing
tobacco. Upto now OSF has no accepted lines of treatment.

Recent polls in India suggest that 70 percent are in favour of banning STP
because of the widening addiction of children and the youth to them. Many
of the states in India have already banned them and the Government of India
is soon going to ban the sale-manufacture of paan masala/gutka nationally.
All 15 countries in the EEC have banned them while many other European
states have either banned or restricted their sale and distribution. The
trend worldwide is to control or monitor the STP business.

Economic irrelevance: Statistics in India reveal that the industry grew
from Rs 200 crores in 1992 to Rs 1500 crores today. Presently, Nepal's
entire consumption is met by imports - official and unofficial - from India
as there are no manufactures here. A few attempts were made but didn't
succeed as local manufacturers didn't have the right know-how about the
ingredients nor the marketing skills to compete with the imported brands.
The entire business is in the unorganized sector with no control over
imports and sale. In India too, tax evasion is high and these tax-evaded
goods find their way to Nepal.

Although paan masala/gutka is more carcinogenic than plain tobacco, the
duty structure on them in Nepal is much lower than tobacco products. Excise
is just 15 percent while the import duty is 10 percent - a figure much
lower than that of many industrial imports. Because of this just one
percent of the total collection of tobacco industry revenue is collected
from smokeless tobacco products in spite of its turnover of Rs 50-60
crores. Tobacco is a social evil. Cigarettes are no exception. When it
comes to STPs and cigarettes, it appears that cigarettes can be considered
as a more modern and hygienic form of tobacco consumption.

Out of the total revenue collection of HMG of Rs 180 crores from tobacco
products, only 1 percent, ie, Rs 2 crores comes from the STP industry with
a turnover of Rs 50-60 crores. Further, the business, unlike the cigarette
industry does not generate employment for Nepalese. There is no local
manufacturing plant and retailers of the substance are mainly in the
business of selling paan.