Banning Loose Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products in India: A Policy Analysis (original) (raw)
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Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention : APJCP, 2015
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Tobacco Induced Diseases, 2022
INTRODUCTION In India, the retail prices of bidis and cigarettes varied between the two Global Adult Tobacco Surveys (GATS) conducted in 2009-2010 and 2016-2017. The relationship between the retail price of smoked tobacco products and their use is unclear for India. Our study thus aimed to use available datasets to investigate the association between the retail price and current smoking status of bidis and cigarettes in India. METHODS Current smoking status data for bidis and cigarettes were obtained from the two GATS rounds. The average state-level retail prices of bidis and cigarettes were obtained from India's Consumer Price Index-Industrial Workers database. Descriptive statistics were used to describe current smoking status patterns. Generalized Linear Mixed Models were used to investigate the association between the retail prices and current smoking status of bidis and cigarettes. RESULTS For cigarettes, an increase in the average retail price by one Indian Rupee was associated with a reduction in the odds of being a current smoker of 7% (OR=0.925; 95% CI: 0.918-0.932, p<0.001). For bidis, the association between the retail price and current smoking status was not statistically significant (OR=1.01; 95% CI: 1.00-1.02, p=0.082). CONCLUSIONS Current increases in the retail prices of tobacco products in India seem to have an impact on the use of cigarettes but not bidis. This highlights the need for tobacco product tax increases that result in sufficient retail prices increase to make all tobacco products less affordable and reduce their use.
Smokeless tobacco control in India: policy review and lessons for high-burden countries
BMJ Global Health, 2020
We examined the magnitude of smokeless tobacco (SLT) use in India and identified policy gaps to ascertain the priorities for SLT control in India and other high SLT burden countries in the Southeast Asia region. We reviewed and analysed the legal and policy framework to identify policy gaps, options and priority areas to address the SLT burden in India and lessons thereof. In India, 21.4% adults, including 29.6% of men, 12.8% of women, use SLT while more than 0.35 million Indians die every year due to SLT use. SLT use remains a huge public health concern for other countries in the region as well. Priority areas for SLT control should include: constant monitoring, increasing taxes and price of SLT products, strengthening and strict enforcement of existing laws, integration of SLT cessation with all health and development programmes, banning of advertisement and promotion of SLT, increasing age of access to tobacco up to 21 years, introducing licensing for the sale of SLT, standardisi...
International Journal of Public Health, 2021
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PLoS ONE, 2014
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In harm's way: tobacco industry revenues from sales to underage tobacco users in India
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In 2010, the global adult tobacco survey (GATS) for India revealed that nearly 40% of current smokers and 42% of current chewers had initiated tobacco use before they were of the legal age (18 years old or over). Global evidence shows that those who initiate earlier have a lower probability of quitting the use of tobacco during their lifetime. In order to sustain its profits, the tobacco industry will make every effort to recruit underage users who become lifelong users of their products. We estimate the consumer expenditure on tobacco products by underage users in India. Using nationally representative data we estimated the number of daily underage tobacco users for a year and their annual expenditure on different types of smoked and chewed tobacco products. There are nearly 4.4 million underage daily tobacco users (age group 15-17 years old) in India. Approximately 7.2% of the population in the 15-17 age group are current daily users of tobacco (0.1% cigarette smokers, 0.5% bidi s...
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Emerging Management Practices: Sustainability and Development, 2023
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National journal of community medicine, 2017
Tobacco is the foremost cause of preventable death in the world and India. Cigarettes kill one in two smokers prematurely, half of these deaths occurring during middle age (mean: 35.69 years).1 By 2020, it is predicted that tobacco will account for 13% of all deaths in India.2 The National Survey on Drug Use and Health estimates that each day, over 4,000 people under the age of 18 years try their first cigarette. This amounts to more than 7,30,000 new smokers every year.3