Dear All,

Surrogate advertising and providing sponsorship by tobacco companies are increasingly becoming high to promote tobacco products among various target group which includes school children, college and out-of-school youth. Parents, teachers and students do not realize that these surrogate advertisements are aimed at promoting tobacco products. Albeit many feel that by having a strong and balanced mind, one cannot become a victim of Tobacco products, but global research findings reveals that school children and youth at younger age are more prone to experiment tobacco products and thereby developing an addiction to it. Hence these surrogate advertisement in the form of notebooks, biscuits, pastas, craft material etc… will try to build their “BRAND EQUITY” among them. Research also highlights that those who are exposed to any form tobacco advertisements are four times more likely to use tobacco products than other children.

While shopping for a product how many of us identify a product by their jingles? -Almost everyone. By now almost every child knows about ITC Sunfeast Pastas & biscuits and ITC Fiama Di Wills by the college going youth. Can couples stop uttering “Wills - Made for each other” punch lines? These are few lasting impacts created through well crafted advertisements by the tobacco companies. Advertisements in any forms encourage brand loyalty especially among children and youth.

In order to sustain tobacco market and find their potential consumers, Tobacco Company’s explore various opportunities using their new range of consumable products (non-tobacco) to build their brand name. The main principle of the tobacco companies is to ensure that tobacco products are promoted in a shuttle way and this has never been there until the COTPA act came into existence which ban on direct or indirect promotions of tobacco products.

It is clearly evident that Tobacco Industry is targeting our children through their newly launched range of consumer products and all these advertisements come with a big LOGO of their tobacco companies. Another promotional strategy is through organizing sports and cultural events emblazoned with their brand names so as to retain their visual among people those who participate in them. This has been described as ‘image stretching in technical term’.

We place request to educationalists, Parents, teachers and students to boycott this types of events organized by ITC and/or by any other Tobacco Companies. As stated above, we also request parents and teachers not to encourage children buying Classmate notebooks, Paper Kraft student’s equipments/materials, Sun feast biscuits, pastas or noodles… and all those that are emblazoned with ITC logo and/or any other tobacco company logo’s.

Please be informed that ten lakh people die every year directly related to tobacco consumption. As part of this initiative we request parents, teachers and students to kindly “STAY AWAY” from buying consumer products manufactured by Tobacco companies.

Thanks for preventing yourself/ future generation from becoming victim to tobacco products.