BACKGROUND AND IMPLEMENTATION CHALLENGES: The tobacco industry strategically uses corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives, to discreetly enter schools, promoting their agenda under the guise of social good. This practice violates Tamilnadu Government Order 242 and the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) Article 5.3.
Exposing these connections is challenging as these front groups are often respected in the community and lack transparency, making it difficult to prove their ties to the industry. This complicates efforts to hold them accountable and enforce regulations designed to protect public health policies from conflicts of interest.
INTERVENTION OR RESPONSE: We identified the non-profit association Residents Awareness Association of Coimbatore(RAAC) worked as a front group in the schools which violated the Tamilnadu Government Order 242 and the WHO FCTC’s Article 5.3 by WOW (Well being out of waste) programme. Through our advocacy and lobbying we addresed this issue. Then we approached the members of Article 5.3 committee which are as follows: 1.Health Department, 2.Education Department, 3.Law Department, and 4.FSSAI.
RESULTS AND IMPACT: As a result of this intervention the the Directorate of Public Health requested the District Health Officer of Coimatore to submit the action taken report within 15 days. Simultaneously the education and law department requested to take necessary action. Tamilnadu Food Safety and Administration department passed a letter representing that all the district collectors do not allow the tobacco industry in the school campus in the name of CSR with the help of front groups.
CONCLUSIONS: In conclusion, the tobacco industry’s use of civil societies as front groups poses a significant challenge to effective tobacco control. These well-known NGOs and associations, acting as fronts for the industry, mislead the public and policymakers. Therefore, the tobacco control community must remain vigilant and work to expose these deceptive practices to protect public health.