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Statesman News Service

A woman in the White House?

There are currently nine female governors, six Democrats and three Republicans. Surprisingly, none of them has strong name recognition at a national level except perhaps Kristi Noem of S. Dakota. Noem is a proTrump governor and could conceivably be chosen by Trump as running mate.

Sparing Tobacco

The budget was completely silent on any tax revisions on bidis or smokeless tobacco, which are consumed by most Indian tobacco users. It is pertinent to mention here that cigarettes account for only 15 per cent of tobacco users in India. There are reports which establish that cigarette smokers switch to bidis when cigarettes become exorbitant; this is equally detrimental to health. For public health professionals this negligible tax increase on cigarettes in the Union Budget and leaving taxes on other tobacco products unaffected was a major disappointment