India: Make Polling Booths Tobacco-free, Says NGO

Source from:  The Hindu 03/13/2016

The Tamil Nadu People's Forum for Tobacco Control is planning to submit a petition to the Chief Electoral Officer asking for polling stations across the State to be made tobacco-free zones, State convenor S. Cyril Alexander said.

"We are planning to submit the petition next week. We do not want tobacco products to be available at polling stations or sold anywhere near them," he said.

The organisation had earlier released a people's manifesto for tobacco control which asked candidates to declare that they do not and will not receive any funds from the tobacco industry. The manifesto was being given to all political parties.

With regard to a parliamentary panel recommending that pictorial warnings on tobacco products cover only 50 per cent of the area on products rather than the proposed 85 per cent, Pranay Lal, technical advisor at the International Union Against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease, said this recommendation, if accepted, would harm public health.

"The report of the committee shows that it has a clear bias towards the tobacco industry. It says that this is being done in order to protect farmers and leaf pluckers and to prevent illicit cigarettes from coming in, but it makes no recommendations on controlling illicit trade and gives no measures to protect farmers," he said.

Neighbouring countries such as Nepal and Sri Lanka already have warning covering 85 per cent on both sides of the pack and Bangladesh is expected to come up with larger pack warnings soon later this month. So Indian tobacco products not having adequate pictorial warnings will contribute to illicit trade in neighbouring countries, Mr. Lal said. Enditem