Breaking New Grounds in Tobacco Control - Voluntary Health ...

tobacco control, called the Cigarettes
and Other Tobacco Products (Prohibition
of Advertisement and Regulation of Trade
and Commerce, Production, Supply and
Distribution) Act (hereafter referred to
as COTPA). Section 4 of COTPA prohibits
smoking in public places, public transport,
work places and all such areas where the
public has access. Restrictions on smoking
in public places as mandated in smoke free
rules not only protects non-smokers but
also serves to provide health benefits to
smokers, by limiting their opportunity to
smoke, reducing their level of consumption,
making smoking less socially acceptable
and encouraging them to quit 9 . However,
in the context of developing countries
like India, mere enactment of a smoke
free law does not automatically result in
smoke free public places and workplaces
by prohibiting smoking in public places.
It requires strong enforcement to ensure
compliance to the law by the public. It
is also necessary to regularly measure the
level of compliance to the law, monitor
progress as well as inform and guide
enforcement.
Opinion Polls
In a democratic country, supportive
public attitudes are often necessary for
introducing and facilitating a process of
social legislation by a local or national
government 9 . It is beyond doubt that the
implementation and enforcement of the
smoke free law in any jurisdiction in India
has to occur within a social and political
context, and therefore, it requires the multilevel
support of the general public and
other key stakeholders. Most importantly,
one may have to undergo potentially
difficult negotiations in order to ensure
enough votes for an easy introduction of
the legislation. A major determinant to an
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enactment of the legislation will be the
level of awareness and concern about the
harmful effects of smoking and SHS in
the community. In the context of COTPA,
opinion polls and compliance surveys are
two important tools to assess and measure
public opinion about smoke free policies
and compliance to smoke free legislation.
Opinion polls can assess public perception
about the hazards of smoking and SHS
exposure, as well as public understanding
of the provisions of the law which offer
them protection. They can reveal public
attitudes towards both legal and voluntary
restrictions on tobacco use. Public opinion
has an impact on how well the provisions
under COTPA are complied with and
enforced; hence opinion polls can also prove
useful to assess whether public support for
the law is strong enough to move ahead
with a law in place or whether additional
public education is necessary. In fact, polls
findings can caution policymakers to take
appropriate care while passing legislation
so that the risk of a public backlash with
regard to tobacco control interventions
can be avoided 9 .
After the law has been passed and
implemented, opinion polls can track
levels of support and changes in these
levels over time 10 . They can, thus, also
become a guide to policymakers to include
or exclude certain kinds of public places in
the respective jurisdiction.
Opinion poll findings are, therefore, a
guide to policymakers to adopt the right
strategies which can conceivably impact
public attitudes regarding the harmful
effects of tobacco use and the need for
strong implementation of COTPA. The
scope of smoke free public places can be
further advanced to smoke free homes and
private places. In addition, any change in