New Delhi (dpa) – Residents of India's financial hub, Mumbai, paid fines worth 437,000 dollars for spitting in just six months in spite of health officials warning it was spreading tuberculosis, news reports said Sunday. The 200-rupee (about 4-dollar) fine for the offense seems to be little deterrent, the Times of India newspaper reported. More than 9,000 people died of tuberculosis in Mumbai in 2011. The disease is spread by saliva droplets released from spitting or coughing. Indians are in the habit of chewing betel leaf and tobacco, and both require spitting. While hearing a petition challenging the power given to civic authorities to fine spitters, a Mumbai court observed Tuesday that spitting is an inherent characteristic of Indians. From July to December, at least 110,000 residents were caught in the act, a Mumbai municipal corporation official was quoted as saying. BM ShortURL: http://goo.gl/yKzp1 Tags: Fines, India, Mumbai, Spitting Section: Latest News, South Asia