Beedi Industry in Crisis: MLA Tanveer Sait Urges CM to Press Centre for GST Reduction

Beedi Industry in Crisis: MLA Tanveer Sait Urges CM to Press Centre for GST Reduction

Mangalore Today News Network

Mysuru, August 30, 2025: The century-old beedi industry, which provides livelihood to lakhs of workers, is facing a severe crisis. In this backdrop, Narasimharaja constituency MLA Tanveer Sait has written to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, urging him to exert pressure on the Union Government to reduce the Goods and Services Tax (GST) on beedis from 28% to 18%.

Recently, the Centre increased the GST on tobacco products, including beedis, from 18% to 28%, delivering a major blow to the sector. The beedi industry is active in Karnataka, West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. As the industry is classified as a cottage industry, nearly 90% of its workers are women, Sait — who is also the President of the Mysuru Beedi Mazdoor Sangh — highlighted in his letter.

Recalling the contributions of his late father, Aziz Sait, the MLA wrote: “My father, the late Aziz Sait, was a tireless champion of the rights of poor and oppressed beedi workers. He dedicated his political life to their welfare. Elected as the President of the Mysuru Beedi Mazdoor Sangh in 1952, he fought for workers’ rights until his passing in 2001. His efforts ensured the registration of beedi workers under the Minimum Wages Act, as well as the implementation of several welfare schemes in healthcare, housing, and education. It was through his initiatives that the Central Beedi Workers’ Hospital was established in Mysuru — the only one of its kind in the country.”

The MLA further noted that due to the World Health Organization’s anti-tobacco policies, the production and manufacturing of tobacco products have already declined by around 50%. With no alternative employment opportunities, the livelihoods of beedi workers are under acute distress. The recent GST hike, he cautioned, has only worsened the situation.
Many beedi units are now on the verge of closure, raising fears of unemployment, particularly among women workers. To sustain the industry and protect the workers’ livelihoods, Sait urged that the GST rate on beedis be immediately reduced to 18%.

Appealing to the state government, he requested that the matter be raised before the GST Council and brought to the notice of the Union Government, seeking urgent corrective measures in the interest of lakhs of beedi workers.