Along with a ban on smoking in public places, the legislation will ban sale to persons below the age of 18 years. The bill, which is likely to face stiff opposition from both industry and some tobacco growing states, will also make it mandatory for manufacturers to mention the total nicotine and tar contents on the package. The statutory warning has to be of the same size as that of the largest panel of the package and has to be in both English and a regional language. Nearly one-third of the three million tobacco-related deaths worldwide is in India and the cost of medical care for those suffering from tobacco-related diseases is said to be much more than the earnings from tobacco products. Government sources said the aim is to protect non-smokers from the hazards of passive smoking and also to discourage adolescents from consuming tobacco products.
Critics put this as a hypocritical move since the government allows manufacture and sale of tobacco products as a legal activity. The popular game of cricket will be the first major victim of the ban on event sponsorship. The proposed move has also made major advertisement agencies worried, advertisements worth Rs. 500 crore will just vanish.
As a knee jerk reaction, ITC Ltd., the biggest tobacco company in the India, demanded that the industry should have been consulted before the government took this kind of stand. Out of the 97 billion cigarettes worth Rs. 11,000 crore sold in India annually, ITC accounts for over 65 percent. The company which is part owned by British American Tobacco, is one of India's largest sponsors of sport including India's cricket team. The company later decided to voluntarily withdraw from all sponsorships of sporting activities irrespective of the legal position on the subject.
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