The Supreme Court has today(20) issued an interim order preventing the implementation of printing pictorial warnings on the cigarette packets covering 80% of the packet space.The Ministry Of Health has issued a gazette notification in August 2012 stating the need to carry pictorial warnings in front of cigarette packets on deadly diseases caused by smoking .However the Tobacco Companies operating in Sri Lanka have filed a case in Supreme Court against the gazette notification by stating that the companies do not have enough time to produce their opinion on the decision and carrying pictorial warnings on cigarette packets covering 80% of the space is not practical enough.
The three Judge Panel of the Supreme Court who were heard this case today compromising Judges Eva Wanasundera,Sathya Hettige and Salim Mershook have issued the interim order preventing implementing the Gazette Notification regarding carrying pictorial warnings until 22nd January 2014.the court proceeding scheduled to be resumed on that day.
The Minister Of Health has been recently received an international award from World Health Organization for signing the said gazette notification to implement pictorial warnings in cigarette packets.
The Buddhist Clergy too urged the government last week to implement the said gazette notification without any delay.
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