SHREYA KEDIA
It is encouraging that after a long bitter battle to change pictorial warnings on cigarette from 40 per cent to 85 per cent, India moved to the third position out of 205 countries, from its earlier ranking of 136 in 2014 and 123 in 2012.
As the world community gathered to review its commitment towards controlling the tobacco menace at the World Health Organisation’s Framework Convention on Tobacco Control in New Delhi early this month, the Cigarette Package Health Warnings International Status report that was released on the fourth day of the meet, revealed that India ranked at the third position with 85 per cent, after Nepal and Vanuatu, each with 90 per cent on health warnings on tobacco products.
The implementation of 85 per cent pictorial warnings came into effect on April 1, which saw huge protests from tobacco manufacturers who argued that the stipulation was too harsh and was likely to affect their right to carry on trade and business. Battle lines were drawn with the intervention of the Supreme Court, which directed the tobacco manufacturers to immediately comply with the Union Government’s regulation as larger pictorial warnings on tobacco products were “necessary to educate people”.
One would argue that increasing pictorial warnings would serve no purpose as people are not so sensitive as to quit or minimise their smoking habits on seeing the pictorial warnings. On a deeper note, the purpose behind it is dual. First, it is aimed at reaching out to the people, especially in rural areas, who are illiterate or those who do not notice small warnings. Second, it is to increase awareness about the ill effects of smoking tobacco.
A Global Adult Tobacco Survey-India (GATS 2010), which revealed statistics about pictorial warnings on cigarette packs for the age group 15 years and above, made the following observations: 71 per cent of cigarette smokers noticed health warnings on cigarette packages; out of these, 38 per cent thought of quitting because of the warning label; 62 per cent of bidi smokers noticed health warnings on bidi package; out of these, 29 per cent thought of quitting because of the warning label; 63 per cent of users of smokeless tobacco noticed health warnings on smokeless tobacco product package; and out of these, 34 per cent thought of quitting because of the warning label.
India is the second largest consumer of tobacco globally and accounts for nearly one million deaths annually, which is one-sixth of the world’s tobacco-related deaths. And this figure is expected to go up to 1.5 million by 2020.
India’s tobacco problem is complex. Not only is it consumed in varied forms, but is done by different age groups. The tobacco culture has been around since ancient times when it was consumed in the form of hookah and later in the form of tobacco leaf and beedis, cigars, cigarette. Now, the new form of tobacco consumption is smokeless tobaccos.
It is also a well-established fact that smoking leads to several diseases such as lung cancer, long-term (chronic) respiratory diseases and heart diseases, as well as premature death. It is harmful to every organ of the body. It is the nicotine, a pleasure-enhancing drug, to which a person becomes highly addictive and finds it difficult to give up. The intake of this drug stops body growth and results in various diseases.
In modern times, the ever-rising popularity of tobacco products among youngsters is alarming. Young people in colleges, and even schools, start on these habits under pressure of ‘popular culture’ or peer pressure. Others who belong to the working group, consume it because they consider it to be a stress buster. But they fail to appreciate the consequences.
Slogans like “Smoking is injurious to health” displayed on cigarette packets and run in theatres and TV screens, have had little effect in containing this killer disease. While an increase in pictorial warnings sent across a strong message to the world community that India is serious about controlling this serious health issue, more needs to be done to wean away people from the menace.
The Government is mulling to curb foreign direct investment in this sector. If indeed it is successful in doing so, it will be a huge setback for cigarette manufacturers as it would eliminate the possibility of indirect flow of overseas funds to the sector. Pressure from various lobbies must be firmly resisted. The collective health of the nation is supreme.
(The writer is a journalist with an interest in social issues)