Table 3

Correspondence between lobbyists and the government from 2006 to 2008

DateSenderRecipientLobbying Requests
6 Jun 2006Tobacco Institute of IndiaMinistry of Health and Family WelfareMore time for implementation31
6 Jun 2006Godfrey Phillips IndiaMinistry of Health and Family WelfareMore time for implementation31
6 Jun 2006All India Bidi FederationMinistry of Health and Family WelfareSmaller label size, flexibility with colours, more time for implementation31
22 May 2007Udayan Lall, President of the Tobacco Institute of IndiaAnbumani Ramdoss, Minister of Health and Family Welfare; Naresh Dayal, Health Secretary, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare; Pranab Mukherjee, External Affairs Minister; Bhavani Thyagarajan, Joint Secretary of Health and Family WelfareSkull and crossbones image should not be used on GHWLs, should only cover 30% of label, labels would impinge on brand identify, graphic images such as babies with tubes in their nostrils would create trauma and panic, bidis should also have GHWLs but enforcement of GHWLs on bidis would be too difficult because almost half are unbranded and unpackaged, and public would in turn believe that bidis are safer than cigarettes.34
12 September 2007Rajnikant Patel, President of the All India Bidi FederationAnbumani RamdossGHWLs should only cover 30% of the bidi label, bidi company should be able to choose from three images, label should be in same language as bidi name, label should be in a colour that contrasted with the package35
16 October 2007Gopal Krishna, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Commerce and IndustryBhavani ThyagarajanTime and cost prohibits GHWL implementation36
17 October 2007Sai Sankar, Managing Director of VSTBhavani ThyagarajanTime and cost prohibits GHWL implementation, company did not receive the CD containing the images early enough
It would take at least 36 weeks time to implement the revised GHWLs38
17 October 2007Nita Kapoor, Executive Vice President of GPIBhavani ThyagarajanTime and cost prohibits GHWL implementation, company did not receive the CD containing the images early enough
It would take at least 36 weeks time to implement the revised GHWLs39
22 October 2007Anil Rajput, Senior Vice President of Corporate Affairs, ITCBhavani ThyagarajanTimeframe for implementation of GHWLs inadequate
Less graphic and smaller warning labels should be implemented37
5 November 2007Oscar Fernandes, Minister for Labour and DevelopmentAnbumani RamdossPoor rural workers would be adversely affected by GHWL implementation40
7 November 2007Federation of Andhra Pradesh Tobacco Farmers (cigarette tobacco advocacy organisation)CP Thakur, Union Health MinisterThere should be no restriction on sale around any institution, tobacco farmers will be harmed by GHWLs, tobacco should be treated like other crops, policy is discriminatory against tobacco farmers, alternative employment must be found for millions of tobacco industry workers if this law goes into effect41
6 November 2007,Consortium of Indian Farmers AssociationsOscar FernandesPoor farm workers would be adversely affected by GHWL implementation43
7 November 2007Federation of Farmers AssociationsOscar FernandesImplementing GHWLs will adversely affect economic situation of farmers42
7 November 2007G Siva Ram Prasad of the Nellore and Prakasam Districts Tobacco Growers AssociationOscar FernandesUse of GHWLs on domestically produced tobacco products would give legally imported and smuggled tobacco products an unfair advantage, harming Indian farmers29
3 March 2008Ram PoddarNaresh DayalLobbying for reduced warning label sizes44
10 March 2008Ram Poddar, Chairman of the Tobacco Institute of IndiaKamal Nath, Minister of Commerce and IndustryGHWLs would only be required for cigarettes, and this would give consumers the impression that bidis and another non-cigarette tobacco products are safer than cigarettes45
1 May 2008Ram PoddarCM Sharma, Undersecretary of the Ministry of Health and Family WelfareExtension of timeframe for GHWL implementation because of difficulty with creating new cylinders46