• Experts from 4 states meet to discuss implementation strategies for effective enforcement of tobacco control laws and policies in India
• Experts from 10 departments of 4 states meet to discuss the need to bring menthol ban in India
“A menthol ban is a powerful and crucial step toward preventing the premature Indian deaths from tobacco-related diseases”, said collectively by 70 Directors and senior administrators from various departments (Health, Education, Food Safety, Police, Municipal Cooperation, civil society groups and many others) of 4 states i.e. Odisha, Telangana, Meghalaya and Puducherry during a 3 day regional virtual workshop organized by Department of Community Medicine and School of Public Health, PGIMER, Chandigarh and International Union against TB and Lung Diseases (The Union), New Delhi. They also pledged to stop tobacco industry interference in their respective states which are marketing tobacco products to the vulnerable sections of the society like women and children. The participants also demanded complete ban on menthol products in line with the e-Cigarette Ban by Government of India in 2019. Dr. Sonu Goel, Professor in the Department of Community Medicine & School of Public Health emphasized on shifting the narrative towards introducing menthol ban in order to prevent initiation of tobacco smoking and reduce its sustenance which will go a long way towards overarching aim of Tobacco Free India. He added that menthol besides giving flavor, desensitizes receptors that lead to irritant sensations from nicotine, making the experience of smoking less harsh and therefore sustains this deadly habit among users.
The demand of senior administrators of 4 states coincided with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), United States decision to ban menthol cigarettes in the country triggered by a Citizen Petition submitted to the agency in 2013 by nineteen public health organizations. “Today’s action by the FDA to ban menthol-flavored cigarettes, while long-overdue, is a major step toward preventing a new generation from becoming tobacco users and saving lives”, said American Medical Association President Susan R. Bailey. A report by a committee of the FDA concluded that if menthol cigarettes had been removed from the marketplace in 2010, then by 2020, roughly 17,000 premature deaths would have been avoided and about 2.3 million people would not have started smoking. A global precedent of banning menthol to save lives has already been set by Canada, Brazil, Ethiopia, and the European Union, among others,” said Kelsey Romeo-Stuppy, Managing Attorney, Action on Smoking and Health (ASH).
A total of 15 experts from across country sensitized the stakeholders about various issues on tobacco control, how the tobacco dynamics have been impacted amidst COVID-era and how the pandemic can be utilized as an opportune moment to spear head tobacco control movement in India. Dr Rana J Singh, Deputy Director, The Union appreciated enthusiasm of the participants and vouched full support in eradication of tobacco menace from the society.
Further, he reiterated that India currently has almost 267 million tobacco users in India and the pandemic times becomes essential moment to help users quit and bring in place bans that would hamper initiation of smoking especially among the youth.
