NEW DELHI, SEPT 2: The Centre is contemplating lifting of ban on sale of non-iodised salt in the country, as demanded by Swadeshi Jagran Manch.The Manch has planned a march from Dandi to Sabarmati in Gujarat from October 2, Mahatma Gandhi's birth anniversary, and to sell non-iodised salt in Delhi in protest against the ban. The Government may lift the ban before that to pre-empt the march.``We want the people to buy salt by consensus and not compulsion'', Union Health Minister C P Thakur told The Indian Express today while referring to Kerala where State Government has been taking most of the decisions as per people's wishes.Interestingly, the Congress was not in favour of lifting of the ban. Congress president Sonia Gandhi wrote a letter to Prime Minister about a month back, demanding that iodised salt be made available to everyone in the country.Agreeing with Sonia, Thakur said that the Government's priority was to make iodised salt available to everyone but the choice of having iodised or non-iodised salt shall however, rest with the people. ``We don't want to thrust our decision on the people'', he said.The SJM was protesting against the ban as people were forced to buy expensive iodised salt even in areas not witnessing iodine deficiency.The Health Minister claimed the Government was committed to supplying all kind of salts to the people - non-branded iodised salt, branded iodised salt and even non-iodised salt (if there is a consensus).The Health Minister would soon convene a meeting of Health ministers of various states to develop a consensus. ``In case there is no consensus, we will have discussion within our department before going to the Prime Minister's Office and the Union Cabinet'', Thakur said.
