Sun Aug 24 00:00:00 UTC 2025: Okay, here’s a news article based on the provided text, with a focus on summarizing the key points and presenting them in a news-style format:

**The Hindu – August 24, 2025**

**India’s Tobacco Control Measures Fall Short, Urgent Reforms Needed**

**New Delhi:** India’s efforts to curb tobacco use are facing serious challenges despite existing legislation, highlighting the urgent need for comprehensive reforms and stricter enforcement, according to a report published today. The current Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act (COTPA) 2003, though stringent on paper, suffers from poor implementation, inadequate focus on smokeless tobacco (SLT), and a failure to address surrogate advertising and indirect promotion in media like movies and streaming platforms.

The report emphasizes the staggering economic burden of tobacco, estimating costs of ₹1,773.4 billion (1.04% of GDP) in 2017 for those aged 35 and older, alongside ₹566.7 billion (0.33% of GDP) in healthcare costs due to secondhand smoke.

Experts are calling for several key changes:

* **Strengthened SLT Control:** Current regulations on SLT are deemed weak and poorly enforced, despite its widespread use due to affordability and cultural acceptance.
* **Crackdown on Surrogate Advertising:** Loopholes allowing tobacco companies to promote their products through similar packaging for other goods must be closed. Exposure to tobacco use in movies and on streaming platforms must be addressed.
* **Increased Tobacco Taxation:** India’s tobacco taxes, particularly on bidis and SLT, are far below WHO recommendations. Raising taxes is seen as the most effective way to reduce consumption.
* **Improved Warning Labels:** Current warning labels, updated every two years, lack evidence of effectiveness. Calls are being made for plain packaging and the use of more informative health warnings, similar to those used in European countries.
* **Stringent Enforcement of E-cigarette Ban:** The Prohibition of Electronic Cigarettes Act (PECA) 2019 is poorly enforced, allowing online sales of e-cigarettes and increasing access for adolescents.
* **Holistic Approach by NTCP:** The National Tobacco Control Programme (NTCP) needs to address the social and economic factors driving tobacco use, such as poverty, stress, and unemployment.
* **Effective School-Based Education:** The Tobacco Free Education Institute (ToFEI) is criticized for lacking scientific rigor, teacher training, parental involvement, and cessation support for children.
* **Investment in Research and Oversight:** Greater investment in research institutions is needed to track tobacco use trends and evaluate control strategies. An independent body is essential to monitor and expose industry interference.

The report concludes that a coordinated, multi-pronged approach involving multiple government ministries is crucial to achieving a tobacco-free India.

**Dr. Parth Sharma (MD student), Dr. Amod L. Borle (associate professor) and Dr. M.M. Singh (Director Professor and Head) work at the Department of Community Medicine, MAMC, Delhi. Dr. Pragati Hebbar is the Assistant Director Research at IPH Bengaluru. Dr. Rijo M. John is a health economist.**

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