Silent Tobacco Trap May Push India’s Youth Into Cancer Crisis, Warn Experts

From banning advertising to expanding pictorial warnings and restricting sales near schools, India has taken commendable steps to strengthen tobacco control. Yet, a dangerous tobacco trap is tightening around children and youth, who are increasingly being targeted by tobacco firms through subtle and indirect practices that slip past existing laws, health and education experts have warned. They cautioned that continued neglect in this direction could push a new generation into a looming cancer epidemic.

Dr. Shalini Singh, Director of the ICMR–National Institute of Cancer Prevention and Research, said flavoured products, sleek packaging, surrogate branding, social media influence and easy access through neighbourhood vendors are drawing children into nicotine use before they fully understand its consequences. “These tactics are especially harmful because they normalise consumption while masking long-term health risks,” she said.

“When tobacco products are displayed openly at points of sale and placed alongside items meant for children, it sends a misleading signal that these products are harmless,” she said, in a bid to drive home her point.

Branding cues and indirect promotions further reinforce this exposure, she noted, cautioning that if this trend is not checked urgently, it could lead to a new epidemic of cancers and lung diseases in the coming years.

Dr. Singh was flagging the health-related issues at a National Youth Day webinar, “The Silent Push: Tobacco and Young India,” organised by Tobacco Free India, a citizen initiative, on the birth anniversary of Swami Vivekananda recently.

From a child health perspective, Dr. Naveen Thacker, Executive Director of the International Pediatric Association, warned that the problem begins far earlier than commonly assumed. Referring to a cross-sectional study conducted in Gandhinagar, Gujarat, Dr. Thacker sounded the alarm as he said nearly one in six children around the age of 10 had already experimented with tobacco.

Echoing these concerns, Dr. M.C. Misra, public health expert and former Director of AIIMS, New Delhi, cautioned that the consequences of inaction could be severe and long-lasting. “If we do not intervene today and reduce children’s exposure to tobacco, we are clearly heading towards the next epidemic of cancers and lung diseases,” he said.

From an education perspective, Prof. J.S. Rajput, Padma Shri awardee and former Director of NCERT, said celebrity-linked surrogate promotions add another troubling layer to the problem and call for collective responsibility.

“Education does not happen only in classrooms. Children learn from what they see in society,” he said. “When film stars or sports personalities are indirectly associated with tobacco brands, it sends a powerful and misleading message. Society and the government must take responsibility.”

Building on this, several speakers, including Prof. J.S. Rajput, stressed the importance of curbing surrogate branding and celebrity-linked promotions, observing that aspirational cues play a disproportionate role in shaping youth behaviour. When admired public figures are indirectly associated with tobacco brands, they said, it undermines both health messaging and value-based education.

Other experts noted that these layered exposures together make tobacco products appear harmless, easily accessible, and socially acceptable to impressionable young minds.

To delay initiation and reduce lifetime dependence, experts also highlighted the potential public health benefit of raising the legal age for purchase of tobacco products, similar to alcohol. Global evidence shows that even modest delays in initiation significantly reduce long-term addiction and disease burden. They further stressed that tobacco should not be sold alongside food products meant for children, and that restricting sales to exclusive tobacco outlets could significantly reduce routine exposure.

The continued practice of single-stick sales, which lowers cost barriers and facilitates experimentation, was flagged as another area requiring urgent attention. In addition, speakers called for consistent enforcement of the ban on sale of tobacco products within 100 yards of educational institutions, along with effective implementation of Tobacco-Free Educational Institution guidelines.

Experts noted that while direct tobacco advertising is prohibited under Indian law, promotion today works largely through everyday visibility and proximity.

Dr. Misra lamented that at a time when our youth energy should be channelised into nation-building to make Viksit Bharat, many are being drawn into deadly addictions at a very young age because of gaps in policies.