Finally, 85% pictorial warning on cigarette packets: survey
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This means 90% cigarette packs sold in Assam comply with the new rule. DH file photo
After sternly opposing the government on new pictorial warning norms, the tobacco industry has implemented a new rule that makes it mandatory for them to print the health warnings on 85% display area without much difficulty, a survey has found.
Carried out in eight states, the survey demonstrates how most of the cigarette brands, including those owned by ITC and Godfrey Philips, have implemented the new rule, while a significant number of bidi and smokeless tobacco brands too have followed suit.
“This is in contradiction to the industry position before the court where it argued that 85% rule is impractical because it would not leave any other space to mention other statutory information,” Seema Gupta, director of tobacco control at the Voluntary Health Association of India (VHAI), that conducted the survey, told DH here on Tuesday.
Assam (90%) and Rajasthan (81%) are the two states where maximum compliance was observed for cigarette brands followed by Karnataka, Telengana and West Bengal. This means 90% cigarette packs sold in Assam comply with the new rule.
In bidi, the best performance was seen in Rajasthan (38%) and Telengana (30%). In smokeless tobacco, the maximum compliance (60%) was seen in Rajasthan followed by Delhi, Karnataka and Assam (51-55%). “Even though some tobacco firms are opposing the new health warnings on tobacco products, the study results show that implementing 85% pictorial warning on tobacco products is possible and practical,” said Bhavna Mukhopadhyay, chief executive of VHAI.
The new warning came into effect from April 1, 2016 — a year after the government suspended the implementation of the scheme as per the direction of a parliamentary panel, whose members include a prominent tobacco businessman. Once the Health Ministry went ahead with the enforcement of the 85%-display-area-for-warning-message rule, the industry filed numerous litigation in the court challenging the new rule.
There were 30 odd cases filed before various courts, out of which as many as 18 were in Karnataka. The Supreme Court in May ordered bunching of all these tobacco cases, which are now being heard by a two-judge bench of the Karnataka High Court.
Carried out in eight states, the survey demonstrates how most of the cigarette brands, including those owned by ITC and Godfrey Philips, have implemented the new rule, while a significant number of bidi and smokeless tobacco brands too have followed suit.
“This is in contradiction to the industry position before the court where it argued that 85% rule is impractical because it would not leave any other space to mention other statutory information,” Seema Gupta, director of tobacco control at the Voluntary Health Association of India (VHAI), that conducted the survey, told DH here on Tuesday.
Assam (90%) and Rajasthan (81%) are the two states where maximum compliance was observed for cigarette brands followed by Karnataka, Telengana and West Bengal. This means 90% cigarette packs sold in Assam comply with the new rule.
In bidi, the best performance was seen in Rajasthan (38%) and Telengana (30%). In smokeless tobacco, the maximum compliance (60%) was seen in Rajasthan followed by Delhi, Karnataka and Assam (51-55%). “Even though some tobacco firms are opposing the new health warnings on tobacco products, the study results show that implementing 85% pictorial warning on tobacco products is possible and practical,” said Bhavna Mukhopadhyay, chief executive of VHAI.
The new warning came into effect from April 1, 2016 — a year after the government suspended the implementation of the scheme as per the direction of a parliamentary panel, whose members include a prominent tobacco businessman. Once the Health Ministry went ahead with the enforcement of the 85%-display-area-for-warning-message rule, the industry filed numerous litigation in the court challenging the new rule.
There were 30 odd cases filed before various courts, out of which as many as 18 were in Karnataka. The Supreme Court in May ordered bunching of all these tobacco cases, which are now being heard by a two-judge bench of the Karnataka High Court.