Chandigarh, November 29

The prevalence of tobacco use in Punjab is lowest among all states in the country, as per the latest National Family Health Survey (NFHS-5).

Consumption among males down

• The tobacco use in Punjab among males aged 15 years and above has declined from 19.2% to 12.9% in the past five years
• The state is also on the top among all states and UTs in the prevalence of tobacco use (just 0.6%) in females older than 15 years

Disclosing this here on Monday, Deputy Chief Minister OP Soni, who also holds the charge of the Health and Family Welfare Department, said the tobacco use was associated with accelerated mortality among adults, especially in countries like India, where the burden of illness and death was heaviest. In India, more than a million adults die each year due to tobacco use, accounting for 9.5% of the overall casualties.

Congratulating the State Tobacco Control Cell for this landmark achievement, Soni said a total of 5,541 challans had been issued under the COTPA-2003 in the past 10 months.

Tobacco Cessation Centres have been established in all districts. Free tobacco cessation counselling and medicines, nicotine gums and patches were being provided to the patients. Moreover, 7,307 tobacco users have availed services at these centres between April and October 2021. Also, more than 800 state villages have been declared tobacco-free.

Underlining the ill-effects of tobacco, Dr Andesh Kang, Director, Health and Family Welfare, said its use was associated with a range of communicable and non-communicable diseases and mental health disorders, resulting in high social cost. “Several studies have showed that the tobacco use can make a person more vulnerable to Covid,” he added. — TNS