Skip to content Skip to navigation

Warning on tobacco packs

By AT News |

38,740 signatures of people across the country including Assam, who strongly support the implementation of new and larger health warnings on tobacco packages in India on April 1, has been submitted to Shri J. P. Nadda Hon’ble Union Minister for Health & Family Welfare on March 18. 

The signatures were collected in an online and offline petition started by Sunita Tomar, an oral cancer survivor. 

The new warnings reaffirm Indian global leadership, projecting the country into one of the first positions for the largest tobacco health warnings in the world. Countries like Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, have taken the cue from India and have dramatically increased the size of pictorial warnings on tobacco packages.“India has demonstrated global leadership with its new 85% pictorial health warnings. It is essential that these warnings appear on tobacco packages as soon as possible. A picture says a thousand words. Picture warnings are especially important for those who cannot read,” said Rob Cunningham – Senior Policy Analyst at the Canadian Cancer Society – author of the report Cigarette Package Health Warnings.  

International studies demonstrate that larger, pictorial warning on tobacco packages are effective way to INFORM users about the dangers of tobacco dependence; CONVINCE youth not to start; MOTIVATE users to quit and COUNTER tobacco industry efforts to use packages as marketing tools. Effective pictorial warning increase knowledge about risks associated with smoking and can decrease intentions to smoke among adolescents persuade smokers to quit, and keep ex-smokers from starting again. Pictorial warning have a greater impact than text-only labels and can be recognized by low-literacy audiences and children — two vulnerable population groups.

A recent MoHFW-WHO supported PHFI study, estimated that the total economic costs attributable to tobacco use from all diseases in India in the year 2011 amounted to a staggering Rs 1, 04,500 crores — 12% more than the combined state and central government expenditure on health care in the same year.

India has 12 crore tobacco users, according to the Global Adult Tobacco Survey (GATS) 2009-2010, which means every ninth Indian consumes tobacco. Tobacco related diseases kills about 2500 Indians daily and over 10 lakh Indians every year. It is estimated that approximately 5500 children, some as young as 8 years old, start consuming tobacco daily.

 

Add new comment

Assamese Translator

Assam Times seeks English to Assamese translators!
Join our volunteer team.
Email editor@assamtimes.org.

Random Stories

BJP MLA in trouble for elephant killing

11 Nov 2017 - 2:17pm | AT News
Trouble brews for a BJP legislator after he shot dead a wild elephant triggering huge shock and anger among the animal lovers across Assam. He is none other than Kushal Duwari, the ruling party...

Sujit Narzary Inter-District football championship begins

20 Aug 2016 - 8:53pm | AT Kokrajhar Bureau
The 9th edition Sujit Narzary All Assam Inter District U-13(boys) football championship 2016-17 has been begins from Saturday at KDSA ground in Kokrajhar. In the inaugural match Chirang DSA beat...

Minor girls from Assam rescued in Delhi

27 Jun 2012 - 1:14am | editor
Police rescued eight minor girls from placement agencies allegedly involved in human trafficking during a raid in Delhi. Altogether 4 persons, including a woman, have been arrested in this connection...

PCPIA demands release of Lachit Nekibur

14 Feb 2008 - 4:51am | editor
The Peoples Committee for Peace Initiative in Assam has sponsored a statewide dharna on Wednesday demanding immediate release of human rights activist and PCG member Lachit Bordoloi with noted lawyer...

Other Contents by Author

Appeal to stop violence in Manipur

We are deeply concerned about the continuing ethnic violence in Manipur between the Meitei community and the tribal Kuki and Zo communities. We demand an immediate halt to this violence that is causing large scale disruption of lives, livelihoods and properties and unleashing even more terror among people. The immediate trigger to this violence was an April 2023 Manipur High Court order advising the state government to grant the Meitei community (members of which now have either OBC or in some cases SC status) the status of Scheduled Tribe. Thereby, the Meitei community would have access to land that is currently reserved for tribal communities. Several spates of violence broke...

Himanta must step down as NEDA convenor: Ripun Bora

Assam TMC chief Ripun Bora on Thursday in a couple of tweets expressed his angst for the inaction of the Central Government in not taking any steps to investigate into the alleged links between Assam CM Dr. Himanta Biswa Sarma and BJP leader Ram Madhav with terrorist outfit. In a tweet, Bora questions the credibility of the Government of India as it has been using central agencies like CBI & ED against opposition leaders all the time. Then why is GOI silent on the allegations of Assam CM Dr. Himanta Biswa Sarma being involved with Kuki militants in the Manipur election in 2017? Bora demanded a NIA probe into the allegations and arrest of Sarma under NSA Act. Meanwhile, he also stated...

Support Relief Efforts in Manipur

Here's an appeal for donations for the relief effort currently being undertaken by  by Rural Women Upiftment Society, Manipur. Online donations can be made to the organisation through at https://milaap.org/fundraisers/support-rural-women-upliftment-society . Dear friends, The devastating ethnic violence and arson that unfolded in Manipur since May 3rd, 2023, have left a trail of destruction, claiming the lives of over 100 people, injuring more than 5,000, and displacing an estimated 70,000 individuals. Numerous homes, villages, and churches have been reduced to ashes, leaving families without shelter or land to return to. The situation is dire and urgent...

Balasore train accident: why Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw must resign?

In a devastating incident on 2 June 2023, three trains collided near the city of Balasore in Odisha, resulting in a catastrophic loss of life and a large number of injuries. The collision involved the 12841 Coromandel Express, the 12864 SMVT Bengaluru–Howrah SF Express, and a goods train near the Bahanaga Bazar railway station. The incident has sent shockwaves throughout the country, and questions are being raised about the safety measures in place within the Indian Railways. The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India has previously published an audit report exposing the neglect of crucial rail safety by the Modi government and Rail Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw. The report revealed...

Boundary wall to AEC need of the hour: AAEA

Guwahati: The All Assam Engineers' Association (AAEA) has strongly called for the demarcation of the Assam Engineering College campus and the construction of a solid boundary wall to safeguard the prestigious institution in Jalukbari, Northeast India. The organization, while expressing condolences for the recent tragic incident that claimed the lives of seven AEC students, emphasized the need for a secure residential campus where hostel residents cannot venture out after specified evening hours. Following the incident, concerns were raised regarding security measures at the college. The AAEA's statement highlighted the fact that the AEC campus is no longer isolated as it was decades ago...

Tough time for Biren Singh in Manipur

An undying orgy of violence in Manipur puts Chief Minister N Biren Singh in a tough time to continue his second consecutive term.  Highly placed sources have said the escalating tension in the BJP-ruled north eastern state is forcing the party leadership to consider a change in the state government leadership as an urgent measure to help the state bail out of the crisis that has left 53000 people homeless so far. Union Home Minister Amit Shah, who is on a four-day visit to the restive state, is learnt to have been considering all  possible aspects to quell the situation.  The symbolic anthem “We Shall Overcome” reverberated the air filled with tears and fears. All...

AAEA condoles AECians’ death, insists on disciplinary measures

Guwahati: Expressing profound grief at the demise of seven brilliant students of Assam Engineering College (AEC) in a tragic late-night accident on 29 May 2023, All Assam Engineer’s Association (AAEA) urges the college authority to impose some basic disciplinary measures urgently. The forum of graduate engineers (many of them AECians) also wishes an early recovery to all the injured students and others in the fatal road mishap.  The AEC Hostel 7 boarders were returning to the residential college campus from western part of the city and faced the accident near the Jalukbari overbridge. The luxury car carrying ten students hit the divider first and then a goods carrier on the other...

Fresh clashes greet Amit Shah in boiling Manipur

In Manipur, tensions have reached a critical point as demands for the removal of Chief Minister Biren Singh or the appointment of a Kuki MLA as Deputy Chief Minister have escalated. The situation took a turn for the worse a day before the scheduled visit of Home Minister Amit Shah, as sporadic gunshots were reported throughout the region. Chief Minister Biren Singh, amidst the growing unrest, has made a bold claim, stating that security forces have successfully eliminated 40 militants since the conflict began. However, these assertions have not been independently verified, leaving room for skepticism and further fueling the already volatile atmosphere. A surge in violence was...

Seven Engineering Students Died in Accident at Jalukbari

In a tragic road accident that occurred in the Jalukbari area of Guwahati seven engineering students died at spot last night. According to reports, a group of 10 Assam Engineering College (AEC) students traveled in a scorpio car. Seven of the students died after their vehicle colliding with a bolero pick-up van.  Besides, five others including the driver and handyman of the pick-up van were seriously injured in the accident. The deceased students hailed from different parts of the state including Guwahati. They were identified as Kaushik Barua (Mangaldoi), Kaushik Mohan (Sivasagar), Raj Kiran Bhuyan (Majuli), Imon Barua (Dibrugah), Arindam Bhowal (Guwahati), Upanshu Sarma (Nagaon), and...

Manipur Fire Service Personnel Launch Indefinite Strike, Demanding Action Against Assailants

In a show of solidarity, Manipur fire service personnel commenced an indefinite cease-work strike on Tuesday to protest against the assault on their colleagues by personnel belonging to the 16 Jat Regiment. Firefighters are demanding immediate action against the individuals responsible for the incident, which involved a lathi charge on the firemen. Salam Jiban, the Sub-Officer of Manipur Fire Service Headquarters, stated that the strike was initiated in response to the assault on five firemen near the City Convention Centre, located just a few meters from the new check post in Imphal East. He emphasized that the fire personnel were simply carrying out their duty to extinguish a fire in the...