Tobacco ban not practical, find cultivators an alternative: MoS
Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare Dinesh Trivedi has said that the Health and Agriculture ministries should coordinate to find an alternative crop for those who cultivate tobacco, as a ban wont be practical.
Banning tobacco is not a practical solution; a slow withdrawal would solve the problem better. We have to remember those who depend on cultivating tobacco for their livelihood, Trivedi said, after inaugurating the second national conference on Tobacco or Health at Tata Memorial Hospital in Parel on Thursday.
The problem is the lack of a dialogue between the two ministries. If the problem needs to be nipped in the bud, a holistic approach is required, Trivedi said, adding that he would be writing to the Union Agriculture Minister, requesting for coordination with the Health Ministry to help those cultivating tobacco find an alternative crop.
The Minister was given a petition seeking that photographs of cancer patients be put on tobacco packs, to make the warnings more realistic. The petition, which was signed by 150 cancer patients from the Head and Neck OPD, also sought a ban on surrogate advertising. Pictorial warnings are not ultimate solutions. While I respect their demands, I think the stress should be on tapping the uncontrolled non-smokable tobacco sale, which is thriving in rural and urban areas in the country, Trivedi said.
The three-day conference will bring together over 300 tobacco-control activists from all over the world, to discuss policy issues to prevent oral cancer by controlling tobacco use. It is jointly hosted by NGOs Salaam Bombay Foundation and Healis, and is supported by WHO and the Union Health Ministry.