Daijiworld Media Network – New Delhi

New Delhi, Sep 25: The Centre has permitted the sale of excess Flue-Cured Virginia (FCV) tobacco produced by registered and unregistered growers in Andhra Pradesh for the 2025-26 crop season at auction platforms authorised by the Tobacco Board.

According to a Commerce Ministry notification dated September 24, the Centre has relaxed the operation of a provision of the Tobacco Board Act to allow the sale of excess FCV tobacco from registered growers and unauthorised FCV tobacco grown by unregistered growers during the current crop season.

The tobacco can be sold through auction platforms authorised by the Tobacco Board, the notification said.

The decision follows a visit to Andhra Pradesh in July by a team from the Department of Commerce led by Additional Secretary Nitin Kumar Yadav to review prevailing market conditions for FCV tobacco.

Flue-Cured Virginia tobacco is dried in a specialised, smoke-free barn using heat channelled through metal pipes known as flues.