The reason why only 2.5 per cent of children in Australia in the 12-17 age group smoke daily is not difficult to figure out — they have never been exposed to any cigarette advertising. If the Australian government banned cigarette advertising on television and radio way back in 1976, a similar ban for the print media came into effect in 1989. Pictorial warning was enforced in 2006, and since 2010 tobacco products have been removed from sight in retail outlets. Now the Plain Packaging Bill 2011 legislated recently seeks to undermine the last powerful marketing vehicle used by manufacturers to build and sustain brand image — cigarette packaging. With effect from December 1, 2012, cigarette packs and tobacco products will have no logos, promotional text, or colour variation. Instead, 75 per cent of the pack must carry horrendous pictures of diseases and conditions caused by smoking. Large text warnings must accompany the pictures. The rest of the pack will have a plain background with the name of the company and cigarette brand in a prescribed size and font. In short, packaging will be used for strongly conveying a vital public health message, and for reducing the association with the brand's identity. Unsurprisingly, the revolutionary legislation has been challenged by one of the manufacturers — Philip Morris Asia of Hong Kong that owns the Australian affiliate.
The challenge is mainly on the ground that the government has been “unable to demonstrate” that plain packaging will be “effective in reducing smoking.” There is no precedent to measure the effectiveness of plain packaging. But the fact that adult smoking rates dropped from 24 per cent in 1991 to 15 per cent in 2010 is proof that several marketing and smoking restrictions put in place have produced excellent results. In fact, as a signatory to the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC), Australia is following the world health body's guidelines on plain packaging. Canada, the United Kingdom, and New Zealand are keenly following the case as they plan to introduce similar measures. India is a study in contrast. The government took the moral high ground during the TRIPS council meeting on June 7, 2011, but has failed to implement simple anti-smoking measures recommended by the WHO. It has not replaced the old ineffective pictorial warnings introduced in 2009. Worse, succumbing to industry pressure, it has revised the FCTC norms of rotating pictorial warnings every year; it will now rotate them only once in two years. Smoking is estimated to kill nearly a million people in India every year. Why can't we emulate Australia?
Keywords: cigarette advertising, tobacco products, tobacco control, pictorial warnings, public health
kudos to caring Australian govt.for initiation of a good step towards
public health. India must follow this route for making its large young
population healthy,sportive & productive with out succumbing before
death traders & procrastinating over effective policy making.
It is time that on the lines of TRAI or LOKPAL concept there need to be a regulatory body in India for all trading and commercial activities including advertising in all media covering all products like Tobacco, Alcoholic beverages, cosmetics, fast food products etc. The packaging and instructions to consumers on all these products should be based on the research by the company claiming the patent and selling or the feed back given by consumers using the product.
A study of scientific literature can reveal that nicotine contained in cigarettes is thousand times more addictive than cocaine or heroine.Smoking is not a habit,its an addiction. Its a fatal addiction which ultimately leads people to a painful death.These consequences are well documented and still the government has done a precious little to curb the ever growing menace. In my view ,if revenue is the only concern for the government then sale of cocaine,hashish and other such drugs should be legalised as well. India would become a hot tourist destination and the influx of drug money into terrorist organization would be removed/decreased. Corporate honchos would take up the job of selling these drugs. It may leased to the rise of quiet a few entrepreneurs. My argument may sound irrational but so is the government's stand on tobbaco products. I beg every non smoker or ex smoker to put a combined effort in getting cigarettes banned from India.
In USA anybody looking under 40 years need to show the ID card to buy tobacco or Alcohol. These stuff will not be sold to people under 18 years of age ,and anybody who tries to buy for minors,their Driver license will be revoked and have to pay fine. Also I could not see anybody selling these stuff near the schools unlike India where TASMAC shops and petty shops selling cigarettes are in the vicinity of the schools and colleges.
Why can't Govt. completely ban the cigarettes rather than umpteen
laws? One says, its because of huge revenue generation, but basic
question is how can govt.generate revenue at the cost of other's
burning lungs? Of course, it is better to reduce if we can not
completely ban it. Its high time, India adopted basic norms specified
by WHO.
In India major concern is the availability of tobacco products
across each and every nook and corner of the country. Despite
legislation banning sale of tobacco products in the vicinity of
schools and hospitals, these continue to be sold, of course with
connivance of local authorities. So the main concern is
implementation of law, which is main cause for concern. There is
also great influence from peer groups especially amongst youths, who
get easily swayed away and fall prey to the habit. So plain
packaging is great idea but more important is to cut away supply of
the products from youths. Another solution could be pricing, which
of course government of the day would not like to touch upon for
obvious reasons as it generates great amount of revenue for them.
But if considered sincerely, this could come as a clear winner.
It was indeed great to learn that smoking can be controlled by formulating guidelines and effectively implementing them particularly in sharp contrast to the stereotypes we hear about the addiction that it should be left to individual to decide and that government can play no viable role in it. India where anti-smoking drive was launched with much fanfare years ago still struggles to impose fine on those smoking openly in public places flouting the rule and causing serious health hazards to the non-smokers. Instead of bowing down to corporate pressure India should show guts and a strong political will to take those measures proved useful in Australia for the benefit of us all.
It is high time smoking stops becoming a "cool" thing to do. And the government should ban all sorts of indirect advertising for cigarettes and alcohol based products. Australia is a wonderful example oh how strategic thinking in public policy results in well being of the society. However, one can only have faint hope at such strict regulations being brought out in India. Political and corporate pressure will soon prevail in nullifying any good policy measures that may be brought out.
India can take a leaf out of the book of Australia to prevent deaths of many people who get addicted to smoking. Film icons who project smoking as a symbol of rebellion and masculinity must desist from those attempts to wean aw3ay the susceptible youth from smoking which may lead to heart attack, cancer and death.The powerful barons promote smoking in the name of free trade but it's sane to mitigate the problem of smoking to save the flower of youth belonging to our nation.
Electronic cigarette is a healthy latest trend among smokers. Apparently it produces the identical oral fixation and the sensation smokers desire. If it catches up many smoking related diseases will disappear.
The salutary move taken by Australia regarding the concern for smoking
is really laudable.Without further procrastination the Government of
India should emulate rather ameliorate the stringent action as taken by
Australia,since adolescents in India addicted to smoking are more and
this no. will soar unless Govt. start getting really serious about this.
The effective measures taken by Australia in bringing down the menace of smoking is very much welcome. On the contrary, the measures taken by our government proved to be of no use.When in 2009 the government introduced the pictorial warning, the hope was very high that this would certainly cut down the smokers. But the black and white picture of a heart in the covers of cigarettes are hardly noticed by the smokers, even if they do so it have null effect. We know the recent regulations imparted by TRAI in SMS regulation so as to avoide pesky sms's, which in general had given the difficulty only to the general sms senders on the otherhand pesky sms's still continue to flow from internet sites.It is such a sad thing that even a single percent of such a regulation is not being planned by our government in preventing this public menace.
Smoking may be injurious to health.But our health injured even without
smoking as seen by so many seminars,medical camps etc.Also We see
less smokers around us except in films and TV serials.the category
"Chain smokers"are becoming a rare sight.What is more injurious to
health is "Drinking".This drunkards are growing faster and faster.
irrespective of age,creed,religion or income levels.This not only
kills the addicts but also destroys the poor families and disturbs the
society.The growing sales only indicate that the states have least
interest in the welfare of the people.We do not know what is the
position in Australia regarding this evil,but India should definitely
act urgently to prevent this Injuries to Non drunkards as well.
chennai
2nd dec
India still sees the revenue accrued out of the tobacco business rather than paying attention to its harmful effects. Yes, India is one of the largest exporters of Grade-I tobacco in the world and it gains a large amount of revenue through this. What remains in India is the left overs, the tobacco which is crude and is not well cleaned leading it to contain more nicotene than its prime quality. Indian kids take to smoking like its a fashion statement, they fall for the glamouring heroes on the screen who show smoking as a style statement, casuing them to emulate the same in real life. Pictorial warnings may only half fill the glass, but the message needs to spread deeper amongst the populous, shop vendors, beeda vendors that selling cigrattes to underaged people is a punishable offence.
India is definitely a study in contrast and why not? The powerful
cigarette lobby consisting dominated by ITC (which still banks upon
Cigarettes for a major chunk of it's revenues and profits) regularly
browbeats the government into backtracking from any commitments they
make at international fora and it's not only cigarettes, it is a known
fact that for every cigarettes that is smoked in India their are
around 7 bidi's that are being smoked simultaneously in different
parts of the country, and the government of India is still busy
promoting Bidi, as it comes under cottage industry, I would also like
to point out that Bidi is much more harmful than Cigarettes while a
cigarette pack may contain Tar upto 10-13 mg for Bidi it is up to 27-
30 mg moreover Bidi smoking is mostly prevalent in rural areas where
the awareness about second hand smoking is also negligible, hence the
government should not only look after cigarette industry but also the
Bidi industry.
In India smoking of cigarette is more compared to other countries and also a large number of children aged between 12-18 years smoke. Government has not bannned the production of this type of hazardous product. And also there is no regulatory authority tp regulate selling of this product. Government has not given strict instructions to shop keepers selling of this product, not to sell it to people less than age of 18 years. Government of India instead gives pictorial signs of heart on the package and expects a person to know its harmful effects and do not purchase this product by seeing the package! I am thankful to Australia who started a prosperous campaign.
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