Opposition to the move has mainly come from the Labour, Agriculture, Commerce and Industry ministries. According to Health ministry officials, ultimately the decision on the ban will be a political one. The government will have to decide whether it can afford to face the outcry that would ensue.

The gutka industry which is aggressively campaigning against the move is appealing to the `swadeshi' sentiments held dear by the BJP. They feel that since gutka is a one-hundred per cent `swadeshi' industry, the BJP would not let it down.

At the meeting, Labour ministry officials did someplain-speaking about the more than 4 lakh workers employed in the gutka and related industries who will be rendered jobless. The Agriculture ministry was no less vehement about the plight of thousands of farmers currently growing areca nut and spices for the pan masala industry.

Not to be left behind, Finance ministry mandarins fretted about the loss in excise revenues. Commerce and Industry ministries wrung their hands about the effect on the Rs 6,000 crore pan masala industry and other related sectors.

And this is quite apart from the numerous state farmers' delegations and gutka and pan masala manufacturers, who have taken their protests on the move to ban gutka to no less than the Prime Minister.

The Health ministry has bought itself some time by seeking expert views on steps to curb the consumption of chewing tobacco and the socio-economic pros and cons of ordering a ban on the sale of such products. But a way out of the current `to ban or not to ban' dilemma that the Health ministry finds itselfin, may come from an unexpected quarter. There are two public interest litigations (PIL) seeking a ban on gutka pending before the Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra high courts respectively.

In the light of the activist role taken on by the courts, should either of these courts decide to go by the findings of the earlier expert committee and ban the sale of chewing tobacco, then the Health ministry will have a way out of the problem.

Groups like the All India Pan Masala and Tobacco Manufacturers Association feel that the government should not impose a ban till it finds conclusive evidence about the carcinogenic nature of pan masala containing tobacco. And as proof they cite historical evidence that tobacco chewing has been common in India and large parts of the world since thousands of years.

The Association recently met Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee to plead their case and to press for an in-depth study before any decisions are taken.

For the numerous farmers' delegations that have beenentreating Union Health Minister Dalit Ezhilmalai, a ban on gutka could be a matter of life and death.In some states like Karnataka, especially the Shimoga and North and South Kanara areas, farmers have in recent years turned to areca nut farming ever since the popularity of pan masala and gutka, caught on.

Health experts say the government is well within its rights under the Prevention of Food Adulteration Act, 1954, which empowers it to prohibit the sale of any substance which may be injurious to health. But gutka manufacturers feel the law should be applied equally and a ban on gutka should be matched by similar action against known carcinogens like, cigarettes, bidis and even alcohol.