Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare Dinesh Trivedi said that such a step would be disastrous for farmers and a phased withdrawal is a better option.

While a number of leading health experts have backed the calls for banning tobacco, Trivedi said that such a move was not practical since it would destroy the livelihood of the farmers who cultivate the tobacco crop.
Speaking at the ‘Tobacco or Health’ conference at Tata Memorial Hospital he said “Banning tobacco is not a practical solution; a slow withdrawal would solve the problem better. We have to remember those who depend on cultivating tobacco for their livelihood.”
Source-Medindia