In Focus

Through the smokescreen

The apparition of smoke ban has reared its ghostly head again, and this time its in Chandigarh with officials declaring it a smoke-free city. Will this affect the hospitality industry? By Dinkar Farwaha

Location courtesy: Novotel, Hyderabad

Guests in Chandigarh hotels, restaurants and other F&B outlets may not be able to puff anymore. Smoking in public places has been banned with the implementation of the provisions of the Central Tobacco Control Act in all parts of the city with effect from July 15. This has sent some in the hospitality trade into a huff. But whether such a ban affects business negatively is a reality or just a perception is worth examining.

Businesses, universally, are waking up to the harm that smoking causes. Movie theaters worldwide are no longer awash in a sea of cigarette smoke and airports don't allow lighting up except in smoking zones. In the recent past, many hotels, restaurants and even pubs have followed suit either by choice or by compulsion. Hotel chains like Westin, Marriott (which has more than 2,300 hotels in the US and Canada itself), Walt Disney World Hotels, etc have turned 100 per cent smoke-free. Even budget chains like Travelodge have become intolerant. Countries like Ireland, Norway, New Zealand, England and Singapore have banned smoking in restaurants and pubs.

While there is no credible evidence that going smoke-free is bad for business, there is a lot of data that proves that going smoke-free is a positive business decision. Dialogues with hotel employees show that those who don't have to wade through smoke to service guests feel healthier and can therefore work more productively. Moreover, smoke tends to damage the venue's furniture and furnishings over a period of time leaving a stale smoke smell that is hard to get rid of.

The middle path

The Indian hospitality sector too is trying to follow the path of its western counterpart and quite a few hotels and restaurants in the country have disallowed smoking except in designated zones. The International Hotel & Restaurant Association (IH&RA) based in Paris along with national associations like FHRAI has been running a programme called Courtesy of Choice in about 150 countries. This involves providing smoking and non-smoking areas in restaurants and bars based on a scientific study of ventilation and airflow. Hotels and restaurants in India as well, under the sponsorship of FHRAI, have adopted this programme.

The Chandigarh ban does not permit smoking in hotels with less than 30 rooms, unless special provision has been made in places like restaurants and hotels. In hotels with more than 30 rooms, it is allowed only in smoking zones. While hotels like Taj had already been following the norms laid down in the ruling, other hotels have started implementing them now.

The Chandigarh industry has a divided perspective on the smoking ban. According to a prominent Chandigarh-based hotelier, the industry is still trying to understand the effects of the ban. While some hoteliers and restaurant owners believe that the business will suffer, others appear more optimistic. Ankit Gupta, managing director of Himani Group of Hotels, reckons, "Initially the ban could affect us, but in the long run we would recover. Moreover, such provisions exist in most of the developed nations and have helped in the industry's development. Therefore we welcome the ban."

The critical issue facing the industry is the regulation's economic impact. Dr Gulshan Sharma, executive director of Chandigarh-based Institute of Tourism & Future Management Trends (ITFT), feels that the ban will be good for the industry. "Studies worldwide have shown that the industry's fears about the financial impact have not been realised. In the 2006 Zagat survey, it was found that 89 per cent of the restaurant-goers surveyed supported 100 per cent smoke-free dining."

Not only the restaurant sector but also the pubs will be unaffected by the ban, according to Sharma. "A survey carried out by TNS MRBI in 2004 on behalf of the Office of Tobacco Control showed that over one-third of people don't eat in pubs because of the smoky atmosphere. The survey also disclosed that pubs would gain custom from those who prefer a smoke-free atmosphere when they eat," he says, adding, "Other surveys too have shown that such bans do not affect hospitality business."

A report from the Irish Central Statistics Office supports Sharma's views. It found that in November 2004 (seven months after the smoking ban was implemented in Ireland), the bar sales fell by only 2.8 per cent as compared to the previous year when smoking was not banned. Similarly, a report commissioned by the Chief Medical Officer in 2003 in England showed that any negative economic impact on the industry because of smoking ban is unsubstantiated. On the contrary, independent economic analysis carried out for the Irish government and the Scottish Executive have drawn conclusions that when the legislation to ban smoking in public places has been introduced, profits in the hospitality and leisure industries have shown a rise.