The Union health ministry has issued a notification on increasing the surface area on tobacco product packets for inscribing the mandatory warnings from 20 per cent to 85 per cent. While 25 per cent of the area will bear textual warnings, 60 per cent will be pictures depicting the carcinogenic impact of tobacco use. The Telegraph spoke to people about the likely impact of the new ruling on tobacco users

File pictures of volunteers demonstrating at an anti-tobacco campaign in Bhubaneswar

When people see a packet with a large pictoral warning, it will definitely have an impact on them. Besides, the increased surface area of the warning will make it easily visible to the smoker. It will definitely have an impact

Sreeja Poonam, 23 architect

This is nothing but showbiz. The government just wants people’s attention. Users only see the price tag on the packet, nothing else. There have been warning for quite a while now and it has not helped in any way. Increasing the surface area of such warning will not help much

Jyoti Ranjan Ray, 36 banker

We may think it will not have any impact on the smokers because they have never paid any attention to the previous warnings. But I have a strong feeling that 85 per cent space used for warning will attract their attention and it will dissuade new users. If this is an experimental attempt, we must welcome it.

Subhashree Mishra, 23, management student

This is not going to help reduce tobacco consumption. Everybody knows it causes cancer and there are warnings inscribed on the packets but the consumption has not gone down in any significant manner. The government must ban sale of these products if it really want to help people

Swarup Ranjan Prusty, 30 businessman