Law goes up in smoke

In spite of a law about proximity of cigarette shops to colleges, most people don’t care

Susheel W Karkada

While research may say that 24 per cent of all people who smoke will die of a smoking-related disease, Vinay K, a student of MSRIT says with youthful practicality that there is still a 70 per cent chance that you won’t. Having picked up the habit when he was in class 12, he says, “Smoking is more like a transition act when boys become men and it was a cool thing to do in school.”

If you see the number of students smoking, you just might think that cigarette companies make their biggest profit from this age group. The fact that you find the little paan-beedi shop so close to colleges (in some cases, even inside the compound) doesn’t help in reducing the addiction.

“It’s common for students to go out for a smoke during a short break,” says Ramkishen B, studying in MSRIT. When asked if there was enough time for the students to go and come back, he says, “Time is not the problem when the shop is right inside the college.”

According to the law, there should be no shops selling cigarettes within 100 metres of an educational institute. It seems that many don’t know about this law and those who do, don’t really care.

Nikhil V, studying in BITS, says, “Even though there is a cigarette shop right opposite my college, it hasn’t influenced me to take up smoking. The shops don’t force you to smoke, but can be a temptation for those who are already in the habit.”

It’s not just one or two colleges in Bangalore that have cigarette shops next to them. If you do a look-see, you’ll find all colleges, big or small, private or aided, have these shops close to them in open violation of the law.

Kishore R K, a student of HKBK, says, “I took up smoking during my second semester exams in a shop next to my college.” Quiz him on his reasons and he gives you an answer most kids can hide behind — exam tension.

It’s not just boys who are used to puffing away. A large number of girls too enjoy the dangerous pleasures of the cigarette. “A lot of girls smoke,” says Melanie D’Sa, a student of Mount Carmel College, adding that there are a large number in her college itself. “For me, smoking is usually associated with men and to do something like that gives me an empowered feeling,” she says. She also concedes that sometimes it can be peer pressure.

As far as shopkeepers are concerned, they are very clear that it’s just business as usual and they are not the students’ conscience keepers. We told a shopkeeper about the law, seeing that his shop was so close to a college. His reply was, “Students are my main customers and if I don’t sell what they want, they’ll find another shop to go to.”

Mummy speak

Parents, who set the biggest example for children, have far more important issues to think about than cigarette shops near colleges. For them, their child getting into a good college is of the greatest importance. A parent, Sundari E K says, “Getting a seat in a college itself is a tough job. We can’t be choosy over these issues,” referring to the closeness of these shops to colleges.

The principal of a college in the city says, “These students are young adults, they know how to say ‘no’. We can’t dictate terms outside our premises, but we can request the government to take strict action against such shops.”

(Some names have been changed to protect privacy).