The “Tobacco Free Youth Campaign 2.0” was officially launched in Assam's Hailakandi recently by District Commissioner Sri Nisarg Hivare, accompanied by the Additional District Commissioner (Health), District Nodal Officer, District Tobacco Control Coordinator, District Program Manager, and representatives from various NGOs.
This initiative aims to combat the extensive health and environmental impacts associated with tobacco use, which claims over 8 million lives globally each year.
Tobacco as many of us know, is responsible for the death of more than 8 million people globally besides causing significant damage to the environment apart from harming human health further through the process of cultivation, production and post-consumer waste.
Every year, nearly 494,000 acres of forests are destroyed around the world for growing tobacco causing massive deforestation. Tobacco waste has been found to contain over 7000 highly toxic chemicals while cigarette butts account for 30 to 40 percent of all items collected in the coastal and urban clean-ups.
As India is the world’s 2nd largest producer and consumer of tobacco, numerous health problems like cardiovascular diseases, cancer, chronic lung disease, infertility, stroke etcetera linked to tobacco consumption is commonly seen among the adult population. Exposure to second-hand smoke also leads to problems like asthma attacks, respiratory infection etcetera among adults as well as infants and children. Considering the fact that 51.9% of adults and 11.9% children in Assam use tobacco in some form or the other, a very focused and strategically sound approach is required to counter the tobacco menace in our state.
The “Tobacco Free Youth Campaign 2.0,” launched by the Department of Health and Family Welfare under the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare, seeks to raise awareness about the detrimental effects of tobacco, particularly among youth. The campaign aims to implement at least 30 information, education, and communication (IEC) initiatives, designate 160 educational institutions as Tobacco-Free Educational Institutions (ToFEI), conduct a minimum of 16 enforcement drives, and declare 20 villages as tobacco-free in each district. Social media engagement will also play a crucial role in the campaign, utilizing hashtags such as #SaveTheYouthCampaign and #AbSeBandCampaign.
Individuals looking to quit tobacco can access support through the National Tobacco Quitline at 1800-112-356.
