Background:
India's Cigarette and Other Tobacco Products Act (COTPA) of 2003 prescribes a complete ban on all forms of tobacco advertisements, promotions and sponsorships (TAPS) of events by tobacco companies across India. We examined the level of variation and predictors of awareness of TAPS in four Indian states.

Methods:
We used data from the International Tobacco Control Policy (TCP) Survey India from Wave1 (Aug 2010- Dec 2011) and Wave2 (Aug 2012-Dec 2013) consisting of 10,585 and 10,501 respondents, respectively, surveyed from Madhya Pradesh (MP), Bihar (BR), Maharashtra (MH) and West Bengal (WB). Bivariate analysis and multivariable logistic regression was used to investigate associations between sociodemographic factors, states and TAPS awareness. All analyses were performed using SPSS V. 20.0

Results:
Noticing tobacco advertisements was highest in MH (78.5%) and lowest in WB (50.1%) in Wave 1, while in Wave 2, it was highest in MP (83.5%) and lowest in WB (32.6%). Noticing tobacco promotions and sponsorships was highest in MP (promotions: 35.7%, sponsorships: 14.4%) in Wave 1, while in Wave 2, it was highest in WB (promotions:15.0%, sponsorships:10.8%). Across waves, education was a predictor of noticing tobacco advertisements, promotions and sponsorships. In Wave 1, but not Wave 2, noticing tobacco advertisements (OR:2.11) and promotions (OR:2.02) was highest among the youngest age group (15-17yrs) compared to corresponding oldest age group (55yrs+). Noticing advertisements and sponsorships remained consistent in urban areas across both waves. In Wave 1 tobacco promotions were observed twice as frequently among rural population as compared urban population but the association was reversed in Wave 2.

Conclusions:
Awareness of tobacco marketing varied across the four states of India to observe a greater impact of the tobacco control legislation. This study suggests that even though policies are the same in all states, a coordinated effort is required to implement the law on TAPS ban consistently.