Include bidi in demerit category under GST: Experts

Public health activists and doctors have urged Finance Minister Arun Jaitley to include 'bidi' in the list of demerit goods under the GST regime, saying higher taxation will discourage its use. According to a study by the Prospective Urban Rural Epidemiology (PURE) reported by Lancet in April 2017, bidi smoking is associated with severe baseline respiratory impairment, all-cause mortality, and ser…