The Goa Prohibition of Smoking and Spitting Act, 1997

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The Goa Prohibition of Smoking and  
Spitting Act, 1997



Manual of Goa Laws (Vol. III) – 912 – Prohibition of Smoking and Spitting Act 

 



Manual of Goa Laws (Vol. III) – 913 – Prohibition of Smoking and Spitting Act 

 

The Goa Prohibition of Smoking and Spitting Act, 1997 

1. The Goa Prohibition of Smoking and Spitting Act, 1997 (Goa Act No. 5 of 1999)  
[18-8-1999] published in the Official Gazette, Series I No. 22 (Extraordinary) dated 
27th August, 1999 and came into force w.e.f. 2nd October, 1999. 

2. The Goa Prohibition of Smoking and Spitting (Amendment) Act, 2000 (Goa Act  
No. 27 of 2000) [25-9-2000] published in the Official Gazette, Series I No. 26  
(Extraordinary) dated 29th September, 2000 and came into force at once. 

3. The Goa Prohibition of Smoking and Spitting (Amendment) Act, 2001 (Goa Act 
No. 44 of 2001) [29-05-2001] published in the Official Gazette, Series I No. 9  
(Extraordinary No. 3) dated 4th June, 2001 and came into force at once. 

Arrangement of Sections 

1 Short title, extent and commencement 
2 Definitions 

3 Declaration of places of public work or 
use 

4 Power of Government to authorise 
officers to act under this Act 

5 Prohibition of smoking and spitting in 
places of public work or use 

6 Prohibition of smoking and spitting in 
public service vehicles 

7 Prohibition of advertisement of smoking 
and chewing 

8 Prohibition of sale of cigarettes, etc. to 
minors 

9 Prohibition of storage and sale and 
distribution of cigarettes, etc. 

10 Display and exhibition of board 

11 Any person who contravenes the 
provisions of 

12 Power to eject violators 

13 Court competent to take cognizance, and 
try offences 

14 Certain offences to be cognizable and 
bailable 

15 Summary trial of offences  
16 Power to delegate 
17 Composition of offences 

 

 
GOVERNMENT OF GOA 

 

Department of Law & Judiciary 
 

Legal Affairs Division 
__ 
 

Notification 
 

7-21-97/LA 
 

The Goa Prohibition of Smoking and Spitting Act, 1997 (Goa Act 5 of 1999), which 
has been passed by the Legislative Assembly of Goa on 31-7-1997 and assented to by the 
President of India on 18-8-1999, is hereby published for general information of the 
Public. 

P. V. Kadnekar, Joint Secretary (Law). 

Panaji, 27th August, 1999. 



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 The Goa Prohibition of Smoking and Spitting Act, 1997 

(Goa Act No. 5 of 1999)   [18-8-1999]  

 
AN 

 
ACT 

 
to provide for prohibiting use of tobacco in any form and spitting in places of public work 

or use and in public service vehicles in the State of Goa and to make provision for 
other matters connected therewith. 

 
Be it enacted by the Legislative Assembly of the State of Goa in the Forty-eighthYear 

of the Republic of India as follows:- 

1. Short title, extent and commencement.— (1) This Act may be called the Goa 
Prohibition of Smoking and Spitting Act, 1997. 

(2) It extends to the whole of the State of Goa. 

(3) It shall come into force on such date as the Government may, by notification in the 
Official Gazette, appoint. 

2. Definitions.— In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,— 

(a) “advertisement” means and includes any notice, circular, wall paper, pamphlets, 
display on hoardings or any visible representation made by means of any light, sound, 
smoke, gas, writing instruments, stickers, symbol, colours, logo, trade mark/symbol, 
display on articles like T-shirts, shoes, sportswear, sport gears, caps, carry bags, 
telephone booths, etc., or any other means which has direct or indirect effect of 
promoting smoking and or tobacco chewing and the expression ‘advertise’ shall be 
construed accordingly; 

(b) “authorised officer” means a person authorised under section 4 of this Act; 

(c) “chewing” means chewing of tobacco, gul (tobacco), use of tobacco paste, 
supari with tobacco, pan masala, zarda, ghutka and the like; 

(d) “Goa” means the State of Goa;  

(e) “Official Gazette” means the Goa Government Gazette; 

(f) “place of public work or use” means a place declared as such under section 3 of 
this Act, and includes auditoria, cinema/conference/seminar halls, hospital buildings, 
health institutions, amusement centres, restaurants, eating houses, hotel lounges, other 
waiting lounges, public offices, court buildings, educational institutions, libraries, bus 
stations/stands, ferry boats, places of worship, beaches, sports stadia and the like 
which are visited by the general public but does not include other open places; 



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(g) “public service vehicle” means a vehicle as defined under clause (35) of section 
2 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 (Central Act 59 of 1988); 

(h) “smoking” means smoking of tobacco in any form, whether in the form of 
cigarette, cigar, beedies or otherwise with the aid of pipe, wrapper, or any other 
instruments; 

(i) “spitting” means voluntary ejection of saliva from the mouth after chewing or 
without chewing and ejection of mucus from the nose after inhaling snuff or without 
inhaling. 

3. Declaration of places of public work or use.— As soon as may be after the 
commencement of this Act and thereafter from time to time, the Government may, by 
notification in the Official Gazette, declare any place to be a place of public work or use 
in Goa for the purposes of this Act. 

4. Power of Government to authorise officers to act under this Act.— (1) The 
Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, authorise one or more persons 
who shall be competent to act under this Act. 

(2) Every person authorised under sub-section (1) shall be deemed to be a public 
servant within the meaning of section 21 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 (45 of 1860). 

5. Prohibition of smoking and spitting in places of public work or use.— No 
person shall smoke or spit in any place of public work or use. 

6. Prohibition of smoking and spitting in public service vehicles.— Without 
prejudice to the provisions of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 (Central Act 59 of 1988), no 
person shall smoke or spit while travelling in or using a public service vehicle. 

7. Prohibition of advertisement of smoking and chewing.— Notwithstanding 
anything contained in any other law for the time being in force, no person shall advertise 
or cause to advertise in any place and on any public service vehicle any material which 
may directly or indirectly promote smoking or chewing of tobacco or any tobacco 
product or products containing tobacco even if classified by any other name. 

8. Prohibition of sale of cigarettes, etc. to minors.— No person shall sell cigarettes, 
beedies, chewing tobacco, gul (tobacco), tobacco paste, including tobacco based tooth 
paste, supari with tobacco, pan masala, zarda, snuff, ghutka or any other such smoking 
and/or chewing substance containing nicotine and/or tobacco to any person who is below 
the age of twenty one years. 

9. Prohibition of storage and sale and distribution of cigarettes, etc.— No person 
shall himself or by any person on his behalf, store, sell or distribute cigarettes, beedies, 
chewing tobacco, gul (tobacco), tobacco paste, supari with tobacco, pan-masala, zarda, 
snuff, ghutka or any other such smoking substance or substances containing tobacco 



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within an area of 100 metres around place of worship or any college, school or other 
educational institutions.  

1[Provided that the Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, specify 
the tobacco products and words/localities within the limits of municipal councils, for 
which, the aforesaid prohibition shall not apply.]. 

10. Display and exhibition of board.— The owner or manager or incharge of affairs 
of every place of public work or use shall display and exhibit a board at a conspicuous 
place or places in and outside the premises visited or used by the general public 
prominently stating that the place is a “No Smoking and No Spitting Zone” and that 
"Smoking/Spitting is an Offence”. 

11. Any person who contravenes the provisions of.— (1) Sections 5, 6, 9 or 10 shall 
be punishable with fine which may extend to one thousand rupees and in case of second 
or subsequent offence, shall be punishable with a minimum fine of two thousand rupees, 
but which may extend to five thousand rupees. 

(2) Sections 7 and 8 shall be punishable with fine which may extend to one thousand 
rupees and in case of second or subsequent offence, shall be punishable with 
imprisonment which may extend to three months, or with a minimum fine of five 
thousand rupees which may extend to ten thousand rupees, or with both. 

12. Power to eject violators.— Any authorised officer or any police officer, not 
below the rank of a sub-inspector, may eject any person who contravenes any provisions 
of this Act, from the place of public work or use, and any driver/conductor of a public 
service vehicle may eject any person who contravenes any provisions of this Act in the 
public service vehicles, from the public service vehicle. 

13. Court competent to take cognizance, and try offences.— (1) No court other than 
the Court of a Judicial Magistrate First Class shall take cognizance of, and try an offence 
under this Act. 

(2) No court shall take cognizance of any offence except on a complaint in writing of 
an authorised officer or an authorised representative of a recognised non-Government 
organisation devoted to the cause of controlling tobacco use/spitting with respect to 
offences under sections 5, 6 and 9 and on a report in writing of a police officer not  
below the rank of sub-inspector, or an authorised representative of a recognised  
non-Government organisation devoted to the cause of controlling tobacco use/spitting 
with respect to the offences under sections 7, 8, 9 and 10. 

14. Certain offences to be cognizable and bailable.— Notwithstanding anything 
contained in the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (Central Act 2 of 1974), offences 
under sections 5, 6, 7, 8, and 9 of this Act shall be cognizable and bailable. 

                                                 
1 Inserted by the Amendment Act 44 of 2001. 



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15. Summary trial of offences.— All offences under this Act shall be tried summarily 
in the manner provided for summary trial under the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 
(Central Act 2 of 1974). 

16. Power to delegate.— The Government may, by notification in the Official 
Gazette, direct that any power exercisable by it under this Act, may also be exercised by 
such officer and subject to such conditions, if any, as may be specified therein. 

17. Composition of offences.— (1) The Government may, by notification in the 
Official Gazette, empower the authorised Officer or a police officer not below the rank of  
sub-inspector to compound any offence committed under this Act on payment of a sum 
not less than 2[rupees one hundred which may extend upto rupees five hundred] by way 
of composition for the offence which such person is suspected to have committed. 

(2) On payment of such sum to such Officer, the offender if in custody, shall be 
released and no further proceedings shall be taken against such offender. 

 

Secretariat Annexe, B. S. SUBBANNA, 
Panaji, Secretary to the Government of Goa, 
Dated, 27th August, 1999. Law Department (Legal Affairs) 

                                                 
2  Substituted in place of words “Rupees one thousand which may extend upto rupees five thousand” by the Amendment 

Act 27 of 2000. 



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Department of Environment 
Office of the Commissioner & Secretary 

__ 
 

Order 

No. 13-28-97-STE-DIR 
 

With the issue of Notification of the Goa Prohibition of Smoking and Spitting Act, 
1997 with effect from 2nd October, 1999, it has become necessary to take measures for 
the effective implementation of the Act. As there are a number of issues that have to be 
considered relating to the administrative, educational, communication and motivational 
aspects of its implementation, it has been decided that a period of 3 months would be 
treated as the implementation phase within which no legal action shall be resorted to 
under the penal provisions of the Act upto 31-12-1999. 

 
2. In order to finalise the implementation arrangements, a High Power Committee is 

hereby constituted with immediate effect consisting of the following: 
 

1.  Chief Secretary, Goa — Chairman. 
2.  Environment Secretary — Member. 
3.  Health Secretary — Member. 
4.  Dr. Sharad G. Vaidya — Chairman, NOTE INDIA. 
5.  Director of Health Services — Member. 
6.  Director Environment — Member. 
7.  Smt. Victoria Fernandes, M.L.A. — Member. 
8.  Leader of Opposition — Member. 
9.  Shri Isidore Fernandes, M.L.A. — Member. 

10.  Dr. B. S. Sonde, Vice-Chancellor, 
 Goa University — Member. 
11.  Mr. Subhash Velingkar, Vice-President, 
 All Goa School Complexes — Member. 
12.  Dr. Sekhar Salkar, Caner Surgeon — Member. 
13.  President, Chamber of Commence — Member. 
14.  Dr. Pramod Salgaonkar, Chairperson, 
 Women Commission — Member. 
15.  Director of Information and Publicity — Member Secretary. 

 
3. The Committee shall examine all the aspects required to ensure the effective 

implementation of the Act. This includes media campaign, preventive aspects, policing 
aspects, notification of public places, educational, health, motivational and awareness 
creation. The Committee shall recommend to the Government the administrative 
arrangements required to ensure that the Act can be effectively and fully implemented by 
1st January, 2000. 

 
Rakesh Mehta, Secretary (Environment). 
 
Panaji, 1st October, 1999. 



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Department of Science & Technology 
__ 

Notification 

13-28-97-STE-DIR/899 

In exercise of the powers conferred by sub-section (3) of section 1 of the Goa 
Prohibition of Smoking and Spitting Act, 1997 (Goa Act 5 of 1999) (hereinafter called 
the “said Act”), the Government of Goa hereby appoints the 2nd October, 1999, as the 
date on which the provisions of the said Act shall come into force. 

By order and in the name of the Governor of Goa. 

Dr. N. P. S. Varde, Director/Joint Secretary (S.T.E.). 

Panaji, 1st October, 1990. 
________ 

 
Department of Science & Technology 

__ 

Notification 

No. 13-28-97-STE-DIR/047 
 

In exercise of the powers conferred by section 3 of the Goa Prohibition of Smoking 
and Spitting Act, 1997 (Goa Act 5 of 1999) (hereinafter referred to as the “said Act”), the 
Government of Goa hereby declares the following places as places of public work or use 
in Goa for the purposes of the said Act. 
 

(a) Auditoria; 
(b) Cinema/Conference/Seminar halls; 
(c) Hospital buildings; 
(d) Health institutions; 
(e) Court buildings; 
(f) Educational institutions; 
(g) Libraries; 
(h) Places of worship; 
(i) Airports, except in designated areas; 
(j) Buses; 
(k) Waiting rooms at railway stations; 
(l) Restaurants, except in designated areas; 
(m) Eating house/lounges in hotels, except in designated areas; 
(n) Public offices where the general public have free access. 

 
This Notification shall come into force with effect from 26th Janaury, 2000. 

 
By order and in the name of the Governor of Goa. 

Dr. N. P. S. Varde, Director/Joint Secretary (S.T.E.). 

Panaji, 20th January, 2000. 



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Department of Science & Technology 
__ 
 

Notification 
 

13-28-97-STE-DIR/299 
 

In exercise of the powers conferred by sub-section (1) of section 4 of the Goa 
Prohibition of Smoking and spitting Act, 1997 (Goa Act 5 of 1999) (hereinafter referred 
to as the “said Act”) the Government of Goa, hereby authorizes the Collectors, Deputy 
Collectors and Mamlatdars to act under the said Act, with immediate effect. 

 
Further, in exercise of the powers conferred by section 17 of the said Act, the 

Government of Goa hereby empowers the above cited officers and also police officer, not 
below the rank of sub-inspector to compound any offence committed under the said Act, 
with immediate effect. 
 

By order and in the name of the Governor of Goa. 

Dr. N. P. S. Varde, Director/Joint Secretary (S.T.E.). 

Panaji, 5th April, 2001. 
 

________ 
 
 

Department of Science & Technology 
__ 

Notification 

No. 13-28-97-STE-DIR/235 
 
In exercise of the powers conferred by sub-section (1) of section 4 of the Goa 

Prohibition of Smoking and Spitting Act, 1997 (Goa Act 5 of 1999) (hereinafter referred 
to as the “said Act”), the Government of Goa, hereby authorizes the Joint Mamalatdars in 
the State of Goa, to act under the said Act, with immediate effect. 

Further, in exercise of the powers conferred by section 17 of the said Act, the 
Government of Goa hereby empowers the Joint Mamlatdars to compound any offence 
committed under the said Act, with immediate effect. 

By order and in the name of the Governor of Goa. 

Dr. N. P. S. Varde, Director/Joint Secretary (S.T.E.). 

Saligao, 29th May, 2003. 
 



Manual of Goa Laws (Vol. III) – 921 – Prohibition of Smoking and Spitting Act 

 

Department of Science, Technology & Environment 
__ 
 

Notification 
 

No. 13-28-97-STE-DIR/685 
 
Read: Notification No. 13-28-97-STE-DIR/047 dated 20-01-2000, published in the 

Official Gazettee, (Extraordinary) Series II No. 43 dated 24-01-2000. 
 
In exercise of the powers conferred by Section 3 of the Goa Prohibition of Smoking 

and Spitting Act, 1997 (Goa Act 5 of 1999) (hereinafter called the “said Act”), the 
Government of Goa hereby also declares the following places as places of public work or 
use in Goa for the purposes of the said Act. 

 
(a) Railway platforms 
(b) Sports stadia 
(c) Ferry boats 
(d) Amusement centres 
(e) Bus stations/stands 
(f) Beaches 
(g) Other waiting lounges 

 
This Notification shall come into force from the date of its publication in the Official 

Gazette. 
 

By order and in the name of the Governor of Goa. 

Dr. N. P. S. Varde, Director/Joint Secretary (S.T.E.). 

Saligao, 10th October, 2003. 



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