Y.S. RANA, CHANDIGARH—MAY 31–World Health Organisation (who) presented WHO-SEARO,s award to the government of Himachal Pradesh for its excellent performance in anti tobacco campaign in the country on Thursday in New Delhi.
The award was presented to health minister Dr Rajeev Bindal by Dr Nata Menabde, WHO representative to India in a function organized by the Ministry of Health, Government of India on the occasion of World No Tobacco Day.
While speaking on this occasion health minister Dr Rajeev Bindal disclosed that Tashgong village in Kinnaur district of Himachal Pradesh was declared as the first smoke free village in the country. He further stated that according to the latest survey conducted by the WHO all the district headquarters of the State have been declared as tobacco free because of active involvement of state government to ban smoking in the state.
Dr Bindal further said that since the imposition of ban on smoking three ago 42591 persons were challaned in the state and a fine of Rs 45 lakh was collected from them and added that 131 cases were referred to the courts which were pending at various stages.
He said that government had banned sale of tobacco products within 100 metres radius of educational institution..
While speaking on this occasion Dr Nata Menabde has appreciated the work done by State government during last three years and told that a delegation of WHO would visit the state shortly to study the impact of smoke free areas and replicated Himachal success model in other parts of the country.
On the other hand India is currently the world’s second largest consumer of tobacco products. It is revealed that smoking would soon account for 20 per cent of all male deaths and 5 per cent of all female deaths between the ages of 30 and 69 here. Over 6,00,000 Indian men aged between 25 and 69 years die of smoking-related illnesses each year
India’s tobacco-related health problems were in focus at the recently concluded World Conference on Tobacco or Health (WCTOH), the world’s leading platform for tobacco control, drawing over 2,600 delegates from over 100 countries. India was represented by prominent anti-tobacco activists Dr. Prakash C. Gupta, Director of Healis Sekhsaria Institute for Public Health; Dr. Monica Arora, Director, HRIDAY; Mr. Mangesh Pednekar, Deputy Director of Healis Sekhsaria Institute for Public Health, and Karabi Majumdar, a social anthropologist, among others.
India is already a signatory to the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) – the first international treaty proposed by the World Health Organisation. However, much more needs to be done to reduce adverse public health consequences of tobacco use in India, experts said.
Government Dilemma – Revenue vs. Public Health Solutions
According to Dr. Srinath Reddy, Director, Public Health Foundation of India, governments often face the difficult dilemma of balancing tobacco industry revenues with public health measures that promote its control. His presentation at the conference centred on the fact that in India, tobacco-related healthcare cost alone exceed tobacco revenues and outlined strategies to equip the health ministry to win out over the revenue ministry with regard to tobacco control.
Global recognition of India’s activists
This year, the prestigious Luther L. Terry Award went to Dr. Mira Aghi, a respected Indian behavioral scientist, in recognition of her leadership in the tobacco control movement and contribution to international tobacco control. Notably, India merited this award at the last 2009 conference as well in recognition of the achievements of Dr. Reddy.
Hard facts:– Over 20 per cent of Indian adults consume smokeless tobacco; Tobacco consumption impoverished roughly 15 million people in India in 2004; Despite their small size, bidis tend to deliver more tar and carbon monoxide than manufactured cigarettes because users must puff harder to keep them lit. EOM