Smoking out smokers

Where there is smoke, will there be a cop?

The offices of The Financial Express offer a smoke free environment since no one is permitted to smoke within the premises, like in so many civilised work places the world over. This practice was not adopted because of any Supreme Court directive or a government order. It is organisational consensus that has worked. But where organisations are too large, too inhuman, and too distant and a work ethic cannot be consensually evolved, the courts step in. If courts get into fighting pollution, make doctors work in hospitals, ensure that colleges publish examination results on time, why not worry about smoking? In India, some two million people sacrifice their lives at the altar of smoking, and the incidence is alarmingly on the increase, fully secure in the knowledge that every cigarette one puffs takes away five seconds of one’s life. Indeed, smoking is as much an addiction as consumption of alcohol is. But even here, a distinction can be drawn. Leading doctors will wax eloquent on the ‘disadvantages’ and ‘disadvantages’ of smoking as opposed to the ‘advantages’ and ‘disadvantages’ of moderate alcohol consumption. Smokers and drinkers will find solace in Winston ChurchilI’s quotable quote, “I drink like a fish, smoke like a chimney and eat like a hog and yet I am 200 per cent fit”.

For those who want to quit smoking, the call has to necessarily come from within. No amount of legislation can force smokers to cast away the nicotine stick. Having said that, the landmark judgment delivered by the Supreme Court last Friday banning smoking in public places should receive an unqualified welcome from the health-conscious. Justifiably, the crusaders against smoking can heave a sigh of relief. The ban is not on smoking per se. The operative clause of the judgment only prevents smoking in public places and public transport including railways. There is essentially a difference between a ban on smoking in public places and a resolute ‘no’ to smoking. Friday’s judgment still allows one to enjoy one’s puff of smoke provided it does not lead to nuisance including passive smoking. Other forms of tobacco consumption have been left out of the order’s purview. Does the order cover bidis and is the village well a public place? Hopefully, smokers unaware of the definition of a public place will not be harassed by policemen out to make a quick buck.