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Ramadoss wants Rs.1 bn more for anti-tobacco campaign 

Union Health Minster Anbumani Ramadoss said Monday he would seek around Rs.1 billion (Rs.100 crore) more from the central government for the anti-tobacco campaign, for which Rs.4.25 billion (Rs.425 crore) has already been provided.

Members of parliament, state legislatures, panchayats (village councils) and teachers would be involved in the campaign against tobacco consumption, he said at a function at Bangalore Medical College.

'My ministry will seek additional Rs.1-1.25 billion to take forward the campaign,' Ramadoss said.

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AP, Karnataka tobacco farmers told to regulate production 

Tobacco farmers in Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka should stick to the crop size fixed by the board and not grow surplus, even though they have been getting record prices for the past two seasons, according to Mr J. Suresh Babu, Chairman of the Tobacco Board.

At the Tobacco Board Formation Day celebrations here on Friday, he sounded the note of caution to farmers in both the principal tobacco-growing States.

He said the board had fixed the crop size at 170 million kg in Andhra Pradesh and 100 million kg in Karnataka and it would not be possible to revise it upwards anymore.

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Tobacco players back in action  

GUNTUR: Murky politics among the tobacco traders' lobby has brought the auctions in Karnataka to a grinding halt. Though the prices soared to an alarming level, the Tobacco Board did not intervene to avoid antagonising the farmers, averred highly-placed sources.

According to insiders in the board, a giant cigarette manufacturer has unleashed the price war on the Mysore floors with a view to cornering other competitors. "It is an open secret that the lead purchaser has kicked off the murky game to make the others either face huge losses by picking up stocks at high rates or run away from the scene," confirmed a senior board official here.

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Public smoking ban draws mixed reactions from residents 

New Delhi: The smoking ban, a pet project of Health Minister Anbumani Ramadoss, that came into effect from October 2 last is yet to find lasting effectiveness.

Overcoming stiff resistance from the tobacco lobbyists, the dogged minister had stepped up his campaign and covered almost all public places, including hotels, restaurants, pubs, offices and international airports.

While some states were enthusiastic about implementing the ban, few showed reluctance. Incidentally, there is no visible sign of it on Delhi streets. Many diehard smokers who cannot leave their smokes behind are seen smoking on the streets and public places as always.

But there are few vendors in the heart of the city, Connaught Place, who said that sales were below the average for the past couple of months.

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After months of smoking ban, Chhattisgarh yet to file a case 

Raipur, Dec 28 (IANS) Chhattisgarh police, yet to register a maiden case against a smoker even after three months of ban on smoking in public places, say they have more serious jobs in hand in the Maoist insurgency-hit state.Top officers at the police headquarters here said the state police, having a strength of nearly 40,000 personnel for nearly 20.08 million population, were still looking for the first case against a smoker.

"As of Dec 27, we are still awaiting the first victim in Chhattisgarh under the Smoking in Public Places Rules, 2008. Though it's easy to catch a smoker anytime we visit public places it's not happening because we are pre-occupied with more serious assignments," an officer told IANS Saturday.

Chhattisgarh is one of the worst Maoist-hit states in the country and insurgents have killed over 1,100 people including 726 civilians since 2004, with majority of casualties reported from the mineral-rich Bastar region.

The government had enforced a ban on smoking Oct 2 at government and private offices, educational institutions, hospitals, parks, airports, railway stations, bus stops, hotels, restaurants and roads to curb tobacco use that kills an estimated 900,000 people in the country every year.

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• Foreign 'soota' may be fuelling terror  

Beware: your foreign cigarette puff may be lighting up terrorism, proving it to be injurious to the country's health too.

Yes, the profits from genuine as well as cheap fake smuggled cigarettes of popular foreign brands are now under suspicion of funding terrorism in India.

Such cigarettes are coming into this country from Bangladesh, Myanmar, Korea and China. Popular brands like 555, Marlboro and Benson and Hedges are easily available at panwalla shops in every city.

A warning has been sounded by the American security agencies stating that the profits from cigarette smuggling in the USA are funding terrorist entities abroad such as Hezbollah, Hamas, and Al-Qaida.

Although prepared for a different purpose, India's top business body - Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry in India (ASSOCHAM) - in a report 'Combating counterfeiting - brand protection', released earlier this year, gives a definitive estimate of the huge funds generated through smuggled tobacco. . . .

After the November 26-29 terrorist attacks in Mumbai, Indian spying and counter-terrorism agencies have started looking at various channels from where terror money is flowing into the terrorism market. The smuggling of foreign cigarettes' has come on their radar.

They are trying to calculate how much money generated through this smuggling network is finding its way to terrorism activities in India.

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Tobacco growers urge research to improve quality 

Tobacco growers have requested authorities to meet them, visit tobacco fields and research centres before taking important decisions.

The growers supported existing regulatory system according to which price of tobacco crop should not be lower than that of previous year, saying it worked well as the farmers got higher returns on their crop every year.

In addition to that, they said under tobacco marketing control all companies needed to indicate their requirements for the forthcoming season by Oct 21 every year and to support growers the tobacco industry had to purchase the entire crop regardless of demand forecast.

During the current year, the farmers said tobacco price was Rs82 per kg, from which 1,000 cigarettes could be produced. Average cost of one cigarette comes to Re1, meaning Rs1,000 out of one kg of tobacco. About Rs82 goes to the farmer from Rs1,000 while 65 per cent or Rs650 goes to the government in taxes, leaving Rs268.

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Cut tobacco FDI to 74%: DIPP 

The Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP) in the commerce ministry proposes to scale back the Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) ceiling for the tobacco industry from 100 to 74 per cent and insert a caveat that cigarettes manufactured in the new ventures or in upgraded facilities must be mainly for consumption outside India.

Sources close to the development said, the department, which is responsible for the policy on FDI, is finalising a cabinet note aimed at a comprehensive review of the policy on tobacco.

Under current guidelines, 100 per cent FDI is permitted subject to companies manufacturing "cigars and cigarettes of tobacco and manufactured tobacco substitutes" obtaining an industrial licence under the Industries (Development and Regulation) Act, 1951.

The proposals also need approval from the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB). The sources cited the policy review as one of the reasons the FIPB deferred a proposal from Japan Tobacco International Ltd (JTIL). JTIL India has a licence but the change in the foreign investment requires an FIPB approval.

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• Litigation against tobacco industry - tactics and fallout  

* Slide 1: Tobacco industry tactics – Influence over policies –Use of litigation as a tool

* Slide 2: Litigation & Tobacco Control Use of litigation as a means of achieving public health policy goals Litigation can complement to a broader, comprehensive approach to tobacco control policy making Though it is believed that public health goals are more directly achievable through the political process than through litigation . . .

* Slide 6: Is the Industry Prepared? Industry strategy in 80’s to counter second- hand smoke issue

* Slide 7: Is the Industry Scared? That’s why the tobacco industry is paying over 250 Billion U$ Dollars to all 50 states in USA as damages (Settlement) Though the industry earned some longevity but the industry is definitely on way out . . .

* Slide 9: The GTC Case in California THEREFORE, default having been entered by the clerk against GTC, as requested by Plaintiff, JUDGMENT is accordingly entered in favor of the Plaintiff and against GTC with respect to all claims, . . .

* Slide 10: Initiating Through Litigation SUPREME COURT ORDERS IN MURLI S. DEORA Vs. UNION OF INDIA CASE IN THE SUPREME COURT OF INDIA CIVIL ORIGINAL JURISDICTION WRIT PETITION d in the Third Cause of Action, for a total assessed penalty of $50,000 in addition to the penalty specified in Paragraph C of this judgment. D. GTC shall, within fifteen (15) days from the date of this Order, shall appoint an agent for service of process in California (pursuant to Revenue & Taxation Code section 30165.1(f)(1) for enforcement of this judgment and order until this judgment is satisfied, the order is obeyed and the injunction is dissolved. E. -------------

* Slide 10: Initiating Through Litigation SUPREME COURT ORDERS IN MURLI S. DEORA Vs. UNION OF INDIA CASE IN THE SUPREME COURT OF INDIA CIVIL ORIGINAL JURISDICTION WRIT PETITION . . .

* Slide 14: Implementation Through Litigation The case of “Pictorial Warnings” in India . . .

* Slide 22: The restriction of “depiction of smoking” smoking” in movies case IN THE HIGH COURT OF DELHI AT NEW DELHI . . .

* Slide 23: The “Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Act” Organizations Act” Verdict . . .

* Slide 24: The Solution

Tobacco Companies have explored all corners of the legal system but still……… There are limited versions of the GAME (More or less similar across the world) The way to beat them in their own game is to BE BETTER PREPARED (Understand all the versions of the legal games the industry plays) & BE PROACTIVE AND AGRESSIVE

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Cigarette racket: UK court fines NRI smuggler 

An Indian-origin smuggler, who was part of a gang that smuggled over 8 million counterfeit cigarettes into the UK in 2003, has been ordered by a British court to pay 1 million pounds.

The Leicester Crown Court ordered Amarjit Singh Kullar (40), one of the masterminds of the 10-member gang, to pay the money within six months or spend another three years in jail. Kullar was sentenced to two years in jail in 2006.

The crime, the court said, was "motivated by greed" and resulted in the loss of 1.2 million pounds to tax revenue.

Nick Burris, assistant chief investigation officer for Revenue and Customs, told the hearing, "This was a sophisticated, well-planned and large-scale smuggling operation which involved a large container of counterfeit cigarettes.

The cigarettes were smuggled from Kenya and then packaged as well-known brands and concealed inside 280 cartons labelled as tea. The container-load arrived at Felixstowe docks, on August 15, 2003, and was intercepted by Customs and Excise officers.

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• American Cancer Society recognizes international tobacco control leaders 

The American Cancer Society announced today the winners of the 2009 Luther L. Terry Awards for Exemplary Leadership in Tobacco Control. The awards are named for the late United States Surgeon General Luther L. Terry, M.D., who led the landmark 1964 Surgeon General's Report which connected tobacco use to lung cancer and other illnesses. Dr. Terry's courageous and groundbreaking work established the foundation for public health scrutiny of the dangers of tobacco use. The awards are presented triennially - the initial awards were presented at the 11th World Conference on Tobacco OR Health in Chicago, Illinois, USA, in 2000, with subsequent awards presentations at the 12th and 13th World Conferences on Tobacco OR Health in 2003 and 2006 respectively.

"Given the momentum of the World Health Organization (WHO)'s Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC), currently ratified by 161 countries including Costa Rica, Croatia, Guinea-Bissau, Iraq, Lao People's Democratic Republic, and Nepal, and the growing global movement to combat unprecedented and aggressive worldwide tobacco marketing tactics, the timeliness of recognizing these achievers' contributions is particularly relevant," said chief executive officer of the American Cancer Society, John R. Seffrin, Ph.D. . . .

These awards will recognize outstanding worldwide achievement in the field of tobacco control and will be presented during a special ceremony on Wednesday, March 11, in Mumbai, India, as part of the 14th World Conference on Tobacco OR Health. The winners are as follows:

* The United States' Stanton Arnold Glantz, Ph.D., will receive the Distinguished Career Award.

* The Ministry of Health of the Government of Uruguay will be given the award for Exemplary Leadership by a Government Ministry.

* The United States' Ronald M. Davis, M.D., and India's K. Srinath Reddy, M.D., D.M., M.Sc., F.A.M.S., will receive the award for Outstanding Individual Leadership.

* The InterAmerican Heart Foundation will receive the Outstanding Organization award.

* K. Michael Cummings, Ph.D., M.P.H., of the United States will receive the award for Outstanding Research Contribution.

* The United States' Dileep G. Bal, M.D., M.P.H., M.S., and Thailand's Hatai Chitanondh, M.D., F.I.C.S., F.R.C.S. (T.), will be given the award for Outstanding Community Service.

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EDITORIAL COMMENT * The Fag End  

According to a report by the World Health Organisation's International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) the disease is now poised to become the leading cause of death worldwide by 2010, overtaking cardiovascular ailments as the number one killer. . . .

The United States, on the other hand, has made a turnaround and is now showing a decline in both disease incidence and death for the first time in a decade.

Again, the reason is not far to see. In the 1980s and 1990s when the US and other western countries came down heavily on smoking, tobacco giants began making major moves towards developing countries. As a result smoking fired up as, subsequently, did lung cancer. It's high time, therefore, that countries like India too initiated aggressive anti-smoking measures. Specifically, we need to urgently commit to a comprehensive tobacco control approach including increased taxes and access to cessation tools and programmes.

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HC fiat to FDA on imported cigarette packs  

A crackdown on imported cigarettes, which do not carry statutory health warnings, may be in order. Hearing a public interest litigation by NGO Crusade Against Tobacco, the Bombay high court on Thursday ordered the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as well as customs officials to ensure that such cigarette packs were seized and confiscated.

A division bench of Chief Justice Swatanter Kumar and Justice Sharad Bobde also asked FDA's zonal commissioners to file affidavits on the steps they had taken against foreign-made cigarette packs which violated rules.

According to the petitioners, there are 85 types of foreign-made cigarettes that enter the country, either legally or are smuggled in, which do not have a statutory health warning as required under Indian law. Rules say every cigarette pack has to display a warning declaring: "Smoking is injurious to health.'' The imported cigarettes also do not have details of the date of manufacture or the MRP.

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Minister admits failure to enforce smoking ban  

Mr Rabi Lal Maitra, state minister of law, today admitted the state’s failure to implement the tobacco control Act which came into force in 2003.

He was speaking at the regional advocacy workshop on tobacco control laws organised by Chittaranjan National Cancer Institute (CNCI) this morning. He stressed on the need to take up anti-tobacco awareness programmes frequently in the state to enable smokers give up the dreadful habit.

City based doctors today said although the Union government's ban on smoking in public places was enforced from 2 October 2008 and a notification in this regard issued by the Union health ministry, it has been observed that most people continue to puff in public places causing inconvenience to non-smokers.

Echoing similar views, Mr BK Prasad , joint secretary of the Union health department said there was a need for anti-tobacco awareness campaigns and advocacy programmes to be conducted in schools and colleges on a large scale so that students could be made aware of the ill effects of tobacco and consequently reduce their smoking habits.

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SC questions decision to defer tobacco warnings 

The Supreme Court on Monday asked the Ministry of Health to explain why the proposed display of pictorial warnings on packets of cigarettes and other tobacco products has been deferred to May 31, 2009. The graphic warnings were originally meant to be implemented on December 1 but the Union Cabinet decided to defer the move last month. The court gave the Ministry of Health four weeks to file the reasons for the decision and thereafter adjourned the matter.

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