Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

Ban advertisement of tobacco products: Health experts to Indian govt

Health experts and celebrities have urged the government to put an immediate ban on advertisement of tobacco products.

Ban advertisement of tobacco products: Health experts to Indian govt

On the eve of World No Tobacco Day, they also asked the Centre to ensure that tobacco control laws and policies are made stronger and implemented effectively.

Noted epidemiologist and public health expert Chandrakant Lahariya pointed out that children and non-tobacco users too visit the point of sale (POS) and are at risk of getting addicted and giving relaxation on POS is like inviting a tobacco pandemic.


He also brought to the notice of the government about the tobacco threat on the people’s health in the wake of COVID-19.

He cited various studies showing how tobacco users have become vulnerable to the deadly infection during the pandemic.

“Every life is precious and we are losing 1.3 million Indians every year to tobacco-related diseases. Apart from cancer, tobacco is also a major cause of a wide range of chronic and life-threatening conditions like lung diseases, cardiovascular diseases, and strokes to name a few,” he said.

iStock 471276614 Tobacco companies specifically target teenagers and kids, says Dr Uma Kumar (Photo: iStock)

The epidemiologist backed the demand to ban designated smoking areas in the airports, hotels and restaurants, as they were a health risk to non-smokers.

Dr Uma Kumar, HOD of Rheumatology, AIIMS, New Delhi, said tobacco companies that make products like cigarettes and gutkha are specifically targeting teenagers and kids.

“They prominently display their advertisements near school and colleges so that they are visible to the impressionable minds. These should be completely banned,” he said, stressing that it is very important to save the youth from these addictive products.

Dr Kumar also highlighted the harms of passive smoking to non-smokers, especially children and women.  “Doing away with Designated Smoking Areas (DSA) can be a game changer in the direction of health of the vulnerable population and making India’s public places 100 per cent smoke-free. “Tobacco products cause serious ailments like cancer, claiming almost 13 lakh lives in the country. For a healthy India, it is critical that tobacco control law and policies are made stronger and implemented effectively.” she reiterated.

Communication expert Neelkanth Bakshi also touched upon various anti-tobacco measures taken by the Centre and said Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been very particular about the health of people, particularly youth.

“He was the one who made Yoga a mass movement across the world. I am sure that he’s aware of the ill-effect of tobacco on the people. The government will certainly sooner or later come out with law to curb the menace caused by these cancer causing products,” said Bakshi.

Courtesy: PTI

More For You

Southport stabbings: Terrorism watchdog rejects definition change

FILE PHOTO: Riot police hold back protesters near a burning police vehicle in Southport, England (Photo: Christopher Furlong/Getty Images)

Getty Images

Southport stabbings: Terrorism watchdog rejects definition change

TERRORISM watchdog has rejected calls to redefine terrorism following last summer's tragic Southport murders, while recommending a new offence to tackle those intent on mass killings without clear ideological motives.

Jonathan Hall KC, the Independent Reviewer of Terrorism Legislation, published his highly anticipated report on Thursday (13), concluding that the existing definition of terrorism should remain unchanged despite growing concerns about violent attackers with unclear motives.

Keep ReadingShow less
Commonwealth wreath-laying ceremony held in London

A military piper, choir, and the Sikh soldiers of the British Army took part in the ceremony.

Commonwealth wreath-laying ceremony held in London

A WREATH-LAYING ceremony was held at the Memorial Gates on Constitution Hill in London on 10 March to honour Commonwealth servicemen and women who fought in the First and Second World Wars.

Lord Boateng, chairman of the Memorial Gates Council, led the event, highlighting the importance of remembering those who served.

Keep ReadingShow less
Student visas

The ongoing negotiations focus specifically on business mobility, addressing only the relevant business visas

iStock

Student visas excluded from UK-India FTA talks, says government

THE government last week clarified that only temporary business mobility visas are part of the India-UK Free Trade Agreement (FTA) negotiations.

Other types of visas, such as student visas, will not be included in the trade deal, it was revealed during a debate in the House of Lords.

Keep ReadingShow less
India Detains Crypto Administrator Wanted by US for Laundering

Aleksej Besciokov, was charged with money laundering and accused of violating sanctions and operating an unlicensed money-transmitting business, according to the US Justice Department. (Photo: US Secret Service)

India arrests crypto administrator wanted by US for money laundering

INDIAN authorities have arrested a cryptocurrency exchange administrator at the request of the United States on charges of money laundering conspiracy and sanctions violations, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) said on Wednesday.

The arrest follows a joint operation by the United States, Germany, and Finland, which dismantled the online infrastructure of Russian cryptocurrency exchange Garantex.

Keep ReadingShow less
Starmer-Getty

Starmer said that the change would free up funds for doctors, nurses, and frontline services while reducing red tape to accelerate improvements in the health system. (Photo: Getty Images)

Starmer scraps NHS England, brings health service under ministerial control

PRIME MINISTER Keir Starmer has abolished NHS England, bringing the health service under direct ministerial control.

The decision reverses a key reform introduced by former health secretary Andrew Lansley during the Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition, The Guardian reported.

Keep ReadingShow less