Soon, heftier fines, community service for spitting in Maharashtra

Those found spitting in public in Maharashtra may soon have to clean up the mess themselves. To curb the problem, the Maharashtra government is planning to strengthen the anti-spitting law.

According to Health Minister Deepak Sawant, the government plans to levy heftier fines and make the offenders perform community service for at least an hour.

“We are aiming to bring a legislation in this regard in the upcoming budget session of the Assembly,” Sawant said. The budget session commences on March 9.

While a law against spitting in public places exists in Mumbai, Sawant said it was not a strong enough deterrent. He added that the law is likely to be extended to the entire state.

Sources said Sawant has directed authorities to explore the possibility of suspending licences of car owners who are found spitting in public.

The state’s law and judiciary department is currently vetting the draft legislation, sources said.

To enforce the law more strictly, the state has decided to empower local police officers to penalise offenders. The strengthened legislation will also contain provisions to discourage sale and consumption of tobacco products.

Source:: Indian Express