Excerpt:
A recent study conducted by Delhi's Vallabhbhai Patel Chest Institute (VPCI) to gauge the extent of harmful passive smoking among 50 non-smoking bartenders and waiters found ''significantly high levels'' of carbon monoxide (CO) in their body.

The average CO level in those who worked for around nine hours in smoke-filled discos and pubs was as high as 9.8 ppm (parts per million), while those who worked for more than 10 hours had CO level of 10.38 ppm. Some non-smoking bartenders had CO levels between 16-20 ppm — as found in chain smokers. In comparison, the average CO level in 50 nonsmokers who were not exposed to environmental tobacco smoke was 4.5 ppm.

Scientists say the normal CO level in nonsmokers is around 4 ppm.

''Nearly 24% of the bartenders had CO levels between 10-20 ppm, while 74% had CO levels between 6-10 ppm. Only 2% of this group had CO levels below 6 ppm. Around 4% of them had already developed respiratory problems like bronchitis,' ' Dr Raj Kumar, HoD of VPCI's department of respiratory allergy and applied immunology, told TOI.

CO robs a person's muscles, brain and body tissues of oxygen, making the whole body, especially the heart, work harder. It increases the amount of cholesterol and constricts blood vessels. Over time, it clogs up the heart arteries and causes a heart attack.

Reduced oxygen supply also weakens the bones, joints and muscles, increasing chances of fractures and tissue injuries. It also makes a lot less air enter the lungs.

Dr Kumar said the abnormally high CO levels in non-smoking bartenders exposed to passive smoking suggested they were prone to developing tobacco related diseases like cancer.

'We compared the CO levels of non-smoking bartenders who were exposed to environmental tobacco smoke and 50 others who were not. Subjects from both these sections underwent breath test with mini smoke analysers. CO levels were very high in those non-smokers who were exposed to passive smoking,'' Dr Kumar added.

Shockingly, 94% of the bartenders and waiters were not aware of the dangers of passive smoking. Nearly 48% of them worked nine-hour night shifts in bars and restaurants.

The average age of the bartenders was 39 years with a majority of them having worked for less than 10 years. During the survey, 84% of the bartenders and waiters said they felt stuffy.

Experts say SHS contains 4,000 different chemicals, 50 of which are carcinogenic and are known to cause danger. SHS has double the amount of nicotine and tar than the smoke inhaled by smokers. It also has five times the CO which decreases the amount of oxygen in blood.

Exposure to SHS for as little as 8-20 minutes can cause physical reactions linked to the heart. The heart rate increases, the heart's oxygen supply decreases and blood vessels constrict. This increases the blood pressure and makes the heart work harder.

According the recent Global Youth Tobacco survey, 36.4% of teenage students in India were exposed to SHS inside their homes and nearly 49% were exposed to it outside.

Non-smokers exposed to SHS have a 25% excess risk of coronary heart disease compared to non-smokers who are not exposed to smoke.

SHS exposure causes diseases and a premature death in children and adults who do not smoke. It causes lung cancer, heart disease, chronic lung ailments such as bronchitis and asthma, sudden infant death syndrome and low birth weight in pregnant women exposed to

Excerpt:
Owners say they may have to ban smoking in pubs for the time being as creating a separate enclosure will require complete redesign. Be prepared to step into ''smoking prohibited'' pubs and discos on October 2. Even as the health ministry plans to come out with a public notice giving out the specifications for the smoking enclosures in pubs and restaurants by next week, pub owners in the city fear they will have to prohibit smoking on their premises till the required infrastructure is put in place.

''We are looking at creating a separate smoking enclosure and have even consulted our architects. But there is no clarity on the specifications set by the government for smoking zones yet. Since the entire ambience will get affected with the changes, I am hoping for an extension of the October 2 deadline. Otherwise, we will have to make the place entirely non-smoking till the designated smoking area is ready,'' said Rajiv Sarna of F-bar...

Added Kashif Farooq of Urban Pind: ''The changes being suggested are next to impossible to be carried out in a running set-up. The property will need to be completely redesigned. There are about 200 outlets running in the Capital which will need to incorporate smoking enclosures in their existing designs. For us, fortunately, there is a terrace which we are thinking of converting into a smoking zone.''

As confusion prevails over the specifications of the enclosures, a senior official from the health ministry told Times City that a public notice has been drafted which will be out next week. ''The public notice will be published and also be made available on the ministry's website next week. It will give details about the features which the smoking enclosures need to have. The space, essentially, has to have a good ventilation system and must be segregated from the rest of the restaurant. We are also advising self-service so that waiters and other restaurant staff are not exposed to the smoke,'' said the official.

Smoking Buddha making Kolkata lose international aid
Mumbai Mirror News, Mumbai, Maharashtra
Tuesday, 16 September 2008

Excerpt:

Shocking as it may sound, West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharya' s smoking habits are making state capital Kolkata lose out on "millions of dollars" in international funds to fight the tobacco menace.

"I myself formulated two applications in the last six months on behalf of Kolkata to fund the city to curb tobacco consumption. But both were rejected by the Bloomberg Initiative, a global programme to reduce tobacco use in low and middle income countries, as the administrative head himself smokes in public," said a senior World Health Organisation (WHO) official.

In the last couple of years, the eastern metropolis has lost out to other Indian cities at least thrice. In WB, a tidy 70% percent of the male population consume tobacco, the highest in the country. "When the Chief Minister himself smokes, how will others believe that the state or its capital is serious or even interested in controlling tobacco?" said the official

Tobacco - Need for effective regulation
M Govinda Rao, Business Standard, New Delhi, Delhi
2 September 2008

Excerpt:
The most important thing is to ban all forms of tobacco consumption in public places.
By now, it is well established that tobacco is the single-most important contributor to non-communicable diseases in India. India has the second-largest number of tobacco consumers. Almost 10 per cent of the world's tobacco consumers numbering 120 million are Indians. Interestingly, unlike in the west, 85 per cent of this is non-cigarette consumption in the form of bidis, chewing tobacco and paan.

With acceleration in economic growth and in keeping with significant increase in disposable incomes, tobacco consumption in India has shown a sharp increase in recent years. Not surprisingly, cigarette manufacturers from industrialised countries are strategically shifting their markets to emerging economies like India. At the same time, there is a growing realisation in civil society, the media and the government of the need to control the spread of the tobacco epidemic by enforcing regulations and making people aware of the mortality consequences of tobacco consumption. At the same time, the tobacco economy involves millions of workers who are directly or indirectly involved in farming, manufacturing and trade. Finding alternative sources of employment and incomes for these people must be a part of the action plan in curtailing the consumption of tobacco.

Excerpt: Smokers beware! The government is empowering school principals, postmen, railway stationmasters, even your boss to book you if you're caught smoking in a public place after Oct 2 - the birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi

The health ministry has already sent the rule for gazette notification and will make it public in the second week of September.

"The government is yet to approve a fine of Rs.2,000 for those caught smoking in public," said a senior health ministry official. "So we are implementing the new Smoking in Public Places Rules 2008 with the old fine amount - up to Rs.200."

The new rule will also expand the definition of public places from government buildings to include all office buildings, hospitals, schools, colleges, railway stations, airports, bus stands, hotels and restaurants.

President Pratibha Patil will join the BMC's fight against hookah parlours in the city. The first citizen has promised that during her visit to Mumbai during a world conclave against tobacco on March 8, she will speak out against restaurants serving hookahs, which are popular among college and school-going youngsters.

Patil met mayor Shubha Raul in Delhi on Thursday and showed interest in the civic corporation' s drive against these parlours. The BMC has issued warning notices to many parlours, which had obtained licences under Section 394 of the BMC Act. Read more

I am the Chairman, Crusade Against Tobacco -a branch of the Neil Charitable Trust.

From the year 2004 when the Act was implemented, I have been complaining to all the authorities both at the centre and the State i.e. Masharashtra about the non implementation of the Act. My letters were just being forwarded from one Government agency to another without any action being taken.

I have filed a PIL in the Bombay High Court where the second hearing is coming on 23rd October, 2008 about the non implementation of the Act.

In Bombay I have been complaining about the BMC smoking and it is sad to say that very senior officials in the BMC are smoking and nobody can take action against them.

In Delhi when I was there on 17th, 18th and 19th September, 2008, I caught 45 people smoking in the Nirman Bhawan itself and the people were fined.

I found that in most of the Government Offices that I had visited during those three days, smoking was going on.

I think Ramadoss will be successful if he will place smoke detectors in all cabins/toilets of public places.

Vincent Nazareth
Chairman
Crusade Against Tobacco