700kg of paan seized in Dubai

Dubai: The fight against the banned betel leaf is on.

Hundreds of kilograms of betel leaves — popularly known as paan — were seized and destroyed after a raid was carried out earlier this week in Deira, authorities said on Tuesday.

After receiving a tip-off from a concerned resident, Dubai Municipality officials and officers from Naif police station raided a building in Al Ras that was being used as a processing and distribution plant to sell betel leaves.

“We discovered 700 kilograms of betel leaves at the site, and have destroyed it in a secure and proper manner,” said Abdul Majeed Al Saifaie, director of the Waste Management Department at Dubai Municipality.

Betel leaves are largely popular among people from South Asia and the Indian subcontinent which, combined with tobacco and other ingredients, are used to make the mild narcotic ‘paan’.

Dubai has banned the sale or import of paan since 1996 and, according to the municipality’s regulations, offenders are slapped with a Dh1,000 fine for chewing and spitting its residue in public places.

“We carry out raids and hold year-long campaigns against the selling of paan, as part of the municipality’s crackdown against the banned substance. In addition to harming the health of people, [paan] also taints the city’s image because when it is spat out on walls and pavements, dirty red and brown stains are left behind,” Al Saifaie said.

However, he emphasised that the number of offenders distributing and selling betel leaves has reduced significantly in the last few years, following Local Order Act No 11 of 2003, which carries a Dh5,000 fine against vendors involved in the trading and selling of the banned product.

“As a result of our intensified campaigns, traders are now looking for other ways to cut corners and hide behind the eyes of the law, such as selling them in warehouses, retail stores and other types of shops,” he added.

Betel chewing is widely practised in many parts of Asia, and is used for a number of different reasons, including for its stimulant effects, to satisfy hunger, to sweeten the breath, and as a social and cultural practice.

Areca nut, a common component of all betel-sourced preparations, has been observed to cause oral submucous fibrosis (a precancerous condition that can progress to malignant oral cancer), leading to the determination that areca nut itself is carcinogenic to humans.

Source: World Health Organisation