“World No Tobacco Day” and “Tobacco Consumption” in India

Contents

• 1
• 2 What is the News?
• 3 About World No Tobacco Day:
• 4 Tobacco Consumption in India:

What is the News?

Every year, on 31^st May, the World Health Organization (WHO) and global partners celebrate World No Tobacco Day (WNTD). This year, the WHO has honoured the health minister of India with the ‘WHO Director-General Special Recognition Award’ for his effort to control tobacco consumption in India.

About World No Tobacco Day:

• World No Tobacco Day is an annual event organised by the World Health Organisation(WHO) on May 31st.
• Objective: The day aims to raise awareness about the harmful and deadly effects of tobacco use. Thereby, discouraging the use of tobacco in any form.
• Theme: “Commit to Quit“. This theme aims to support 100 million people worldwide to give up tobacco through a range of initiatives and digital solutions.

Tobacco Consumption in India:

• Reduction in Tobacco Use: Due to the efforts of Central and State Governments, the prevalence of tobacco use has decreased by six percentage points from 34.6% in 2009-10 to 28.6% in 2016-17.
• Deaths due to Tobacco Consumption: In India, every year more than 1.3 million deaths are attributable to tobacco use. This amounts to 3500 deaths per day due to tobacco consumption.
• Risk of Covid-19: Tobacco smokers face a 40-50% higher risk of developing severe disease deaths from COVID-19.
• Economic Cost: As per the WHO report, the economic burden of diseases and deaths attributable to tobacco use in India was as high as Rs. 1.77 lakh crores. This amounts to approx 1% of Indian GDP.

Initiatives taken by India to Control Tobacco Consumption:

• Cigarettes Act,1975: The act mandated the display of statutory health warnings in advertisement and on cartons and cigarette packages.
• Cigarettes and other Tobacco Products Act(COTPA),2003: The act replaced the Cigarettes Act of 1975. It aims to provide smoke-free public places and also placed restrictions on tobacco advertising and promotion.
• Prohibition of Electronic Cigarettes Bill, 2019: It aims to prohibit the Production, Manufacture, Import, Export, Transport, Sale, Distribution, Storage and Advertisement of e-Cigarettes.
• National Health Policy 2017: It has set an ambitious target of reducing tobacco use by 30% by 2025.
• Tobacco Quit line service -1800-112-356: It was initiated in 2016 to reach a large number of tobacco users. It aims to provide telephone-based information, advice, support, and referrals for tobacco cessation.
• India has also signed the tobacco control provisions under the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC).

Source: TOI