Saturday, October 11, 2008

Weak people continue to smoke

So after the government of India's ban of smoking in public places - and its just backing of the Supreme Court - it remains to been how successful this ban really is. As much in favour of this ban as I am, I must admit that it is an incomplete one. Sale of gutka, tobacco and pan masala is on and these packets are openly available at road side stalls. Atleast cigarettes do not deface the city like the way paan, tobacco, gutka and pan masala consumers deface the city with stains caused by spitting the remains. 

Meanwhile, the ban on smoking has little effect. In the absence of strong policing about this - policing here is most required rather than wasting time in such things like moral policing - smokers continue to puff away. My own office colleagues continue to smoke in building corridors as if nothing has changed. What's more shameful is that they make lame excuses that why couldn't the government ban prostitution rather than smoking or that they are smoking in between 'public places' (referring to the staircase area between the two floor of a building) or why can't the government concentrate on poverty or unemployment instead of smoking and many more such lame excuses that I consider it a waste of time even remembering them. I wonder whether they realise that the 'joke' is on them, and not on others. 

Unfortunately, I do not blame them. Smokers are weak people. When you puff away cigarettes with regular ease, cigarettes control you and not vice-versa. It takes courage to give away the addiction of smoking which unfortunately, not many people have. 

No comments:

Post a Comment

Has Novak Djokovic left the US Open ghost behind?

It's not just tennis that's back. Even Novak Djokovic is back after being kicked out of the US Open earlier this month. Last week, h...