Pakistan to introduce 'sin' tax on cigarettes, sugary beverages

That sum will be diverted to the health budget," PTI quoted Kiani as saying. Sin tax is not a new concept and is charged in over 45 countries, including India. Sin taxes are imposed to discourage consumers from using products known to harm public health and well-being. They are usually put in the top bracket of the tax collection regime, varying from place to place, to make the product so expensive for the user forcing him to relinquish the habit. The fund collected from these taxes goes into other welfare schemes. In countries such as the UK, US, and Canada, sin taxes are levied on a series of products and services, including alcohol, tobacco, gambling, lotteries, sugary beverages and at some places on vehicles running on diesel. In India, sin tax is levied prominently on tobacco and alcohol. Dr Asad Hafeez, the director general of the NHS Ministry, told Dawn, "The United States charges about $1.5 (approximately Rs 200) per pack of cigarettes, while the UK charges 40 pence (around Rs 100) per litre of sugary beverages as a Sin Tax. Thailand, as well as a number of other countries, has similar taxes that are earmarked for healthcare services." "We have not yet decided on the exact amount for a sin tax (in Pakistan)," he said, but hinted that "it will certainly be a handsome amount." "Some 1,500 youngsters start smoking in Pakistan every day, and we want to reduce that number," he added. In Pakistan, tobacco causes some 108,800 deaths every year, which is close to 298 per day. Various health organisations in Pakistan have been demanding the imposition of this tax from some time. Sanaullah Ghumman, the general secretary of one such organisation called Pakistan National Heart Association (PANAH), said that his association had for many years been demanding the imposition of a sin tax. "Recently, during a meeting with President Dr Arif Alvi, we again raised the issue of such a tax," he said. "The minister for health was also present at the meeting, and the president assured us that he would do what was possible," PTI quoted him as saying. How Pakistan reacted The news received mixed reaction on social media, where some people hailed the proposal while some had reservations over it being termed as 'Gunnah'. Leading the pack of dissenters was Federal Minister for Water Resources Faisal Vawda, who though welcomed the move, showed his reservations with it being called 'Gunnah Tax'. "I'm a chain cigarette smoker myself and I appreciate all the measures taken by the government to discourage smoking and I understand it's injurious to health but this term "Gunnah Tax" is inappropriate. If this is gunnah then what would we name and term the actual gunnahs," Vawda wrote on Twitter. I'm a chain cigarette smoker myself and I appreciate all the measures taken by the government to discourage smoking and I understand it's injurious to health but this term "Gunnah Tax" is inappropriate. If this is gunnah then what would we name and term the actual gunnahs. - Faisal Vawda (@FaisalVawdaPTI) December 4, 2018 Not only Vawda, but many others thought in the same vein. Thats fine, but why call it "sin tax"? They might as well call it "dozakh tax". https://t.co/WzweIWK1Nb - Kasim Gilani (@KasimGillani) December 5, 2018 This "gunnah tax" is yet again another opportunity to start vetting your acquaintances. The STUPIDEST of the lot will fixate on whether cigarette smoking is a sin or not. - Mangogh (@ManhattanMango) December 4, 2018 But there was some positive word as well. O Khuda k Bandon, SIN TAX is a general Term used for Taxes on such items that are generally considered hazardous to health.Taxes on items like cigarettes , liquor etc are regarded as "Sin Tax" ACROSS THE GLOBE ..so relax..those who consume such items are ALY paying Sin tax - Taqveem Ahsan Sidiqi NA256 (@TASiddiquis) December 4, 2018 function catchException() {try{ twitterJSDidLoad(); }catch(e){}} function getAndroidVersion(ua) {ua = (ua || navigator.userAgent).toLowerCase(); var match = ua.match(/android\\s([0-9\\.]*)/);return match ? match[1] : false;}; var versions='4.2.2'; var versionArray=versions.split(',');var currentAndroidVersion=getAndroidVersion();if(versionArray.indexOf(currentAndroidVersion)!=-1){var blocks = document.getElementsByTagName('blockquote'); for(var i = 0; i < blocks.length; i++){blocks[i].innerHTML = '';}}Dailyhunthttps://vimeo.com/user91595356/about

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