{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,18]],"date-time":"2026-08-18T12:30:22Z","timestamp":1787056222826,"version":"build-2736575974"},"reference-count":3,"publisher":"Ovid Technologies (Wolters Kluwer Health)","issue":"Suppl 4","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,1]],"date-time":"2026-08-01T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1785542400000},"content-version":"unspecified","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"http:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nc-nd\/4.0"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["lww.com","ovid.com"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":[],"published-print":{"date-parts":[[2026,8]]},"abstract":"<jats:title>Abstract<\/jats:title>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Background:<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>India has established a strong policy framework to curb tobacco use\u2014a significant risk factor for noncommunicable diseases (NCDs)\u2014by enforcing Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act (COTPA) 2003 and ratifying WHO-Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO-FCTC) 2003. Within this regulatory context, India\u2019s tobacco companies have diversified business activities and adopted brand extension and other promotional strategies. This exploratory study examines these diversification and surrogate marketing practices and their relevance to tobacco control policy implementation and NCD prevention in India.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Methodology:<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>A historical review and secondary data analysis were conducted using company reports, academic literature, and industry sources. Six tobacco companies\u2014ITC Limited, Godfrey Phillips India Ltd. (GPI), DS Group, Pataka, Miraj, and Mangalore Ganesh Beedi Works\u2014were analyzed for diversification timelines, brand strategies, and regulatory responses. Qualitative analyses and time-series mapping were undertaken.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Results:<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>\n                      ITC Limited emphasized brand stretching using its\n                      <jats:italic toggle=\"yes\">Wills<\/jats:italic>\n                      <jats:sup>\u00ae<\/jats:sup>\n                      brand (\n                      <jats:italic toggle=\"yes\">Wills<\/jats:italic>\n                      <jats:sup>\u00ae<\/jats:sup>\n                      Lifestyle,\n                      <jats:italic toggle=\"yes\">Wills\u00ae<\/jats:italic>\n                      India Fashion Week), while GPI used its\n                      <jats:italic toggle=\"yes\">Red and White<\/jats:italic>\n                      <jats:sup>\u00ae<\/jats:sup>\n                      brand (\n                      <jats:italic toggle=\"yes\">Red and White<\/jats:italic>\n                      <jats:sup>\u00ae<\/jats:sup>\n                      Bravery Awards). DS Group diversified into fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) and hospitality, with\n                      <jats:italic toggle=\"yes\">Rajnigandha<\/jats:italic>\n                      <jats:sup>\u00ae<\/jats:sup>\n                      as its flagship brand. Pataka and Miraj expanded into pan masala and FMCG sectors. Ganesh Beedi, however, remained tobacco-centric, relying on scale and cultural imagery. These strategies circumvented COTPA\u2019s advertising restrictions and contravened WHO-FCTC Article 13.\n                    <\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Conclusions:<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>Brand extension and surrogate marketing have sustained tobacco brand visibility within the current regulatory framework. Enforcing COTPA and WHO-FCTC Article 13 with more transparent oversight of corporate diversification may effectively restrict tobacco advertising, promotion, and sponsorship and strengthen NCD prevention.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.4103\/ijcm.ijcm_938_25","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,17]],"date-time":"2026-08-17T17:01:47Z","timestamp":1786986107000},"page":"S624-S630","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1097\/lww.0000000000001000","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Tobacco Industry\u2019s Corporate Diversification in the Evolving Landscape of Tobacco Control Laws in India \u2013 A Comparative Time-Series Analysis"],"prefix":"10.4103","volume":"51","author":[{"given":"Anwita","family":"Khaitan","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Community Medicine, Central Armed Police Forces Institute of Medical Sciences (CAPFIMS) Centre, All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), New Delhi, India"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Shivam","family":"Kapoor","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Senior Technical Advisor, STOP-India and Global Monitoring, Vital Strategies, India"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Amit","family":"Yadav","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Deputy Director, Vital Strategies, India"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Chandravali","family":"Madan","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Technical Specialist \u2013 Networking and Partner Communication, Vital Strategies, India"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"276","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,17]]},"reference":[{"key":"R19-20260818","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"185","DOI":"10.1177\/02537176221123221","article-title":"Tobacco industry and surrogate advertising in South East Asia region: Moves and countermoves","volume":"45","author":"Bhatia","year":"2023","journal-title":"Indian J Psychol Med"},{"key":"R21-20260818","first-page":"354","article-title":"Sports sponsorship by cigarette companies influences adolescent children's minds and helps initiate smoking: Results of a national study in India","volume":"97","author":"Vaidya","year":"1999","journal-title":"J Indian Med Assoc"},{"key":"R23-20260818","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"S7","DOI":"10.1016\/j.ijtb.2021.07.021","article-title":"Indirect tobacco advertising, promotion and sponsorships in the Indian Premier League 2020: Tobacco Industry's continuous presence in Indian cricket","volume":"68","author":"Kapoor","year":"2021","journal-title":"Indian J Tuberc"}],"container-title":["Indian Journal of Community Medicine"],"original-title":[],"language":"en","link":[{"URL":"https:\/\/www.ovid.com\/10.4103\/ijcm.ijcm_938_25","content-type":"unspecified","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"similarity-checking"}],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,18]],"date-time":"2026-08-18T12:00:54Z","timestamp":1787054454000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/www.ovid.com\/10.4103\/ijcm.ijcm_938_25"}},"subtitle":[],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2026,8]]},"references-count":3,"journal-issue":{"issue":"Suppl 4","published-print":{"date-parts":[[2026]]}},"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.4103\/ijcm.ijcm_938_25","relation":{},"ISSN":["0970-0218","1998-3581"],"issn-type":[{"value":"0970-0218","type":"print"},{"value":"1998-3581","type":"electronic"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2026,8]]},"assertion":[{"value":"2025-12-16","name":"received","label":"Received","group":{"name":"publication_history","label":"Publication History"}},{"value":"2026-04-13","name":"accepted","label":"Accepted","group":{"name":"publication_history","label":"Publication History"}}]}}