More awareness against the use of tobacco needed; Gov

DAINIK NATION BUREAU

Governor Dr KK Paul has stressed the need for focusing more on creating widespread awareness against the use of tobacco in Uttarakhand. The would have to be told about the harm tobacco would cause to them. He expressed these view after releasing the Uttarakhand Youth Tobacco Survey-2016  done by the World Lung Foundation in a function at Raj Bhawan today.

Dr Paul said that the message “Tobacco Kills”  should be reached to the remote areas of the state. Tobacco was the major cause of  TB, cancer and many other diseases. Good results of the tobacco-free initiative of the Uttarakhand government and World Lung Foundation could be seen. The survey showed that there had been a decrease in the use of tobacco. However, a lot more needs to be done.

Several laws had been made regarding tobacco use. Implementation of the laws must be ensured. Youth are the soft target of tobacco products. Special measures are needed to keep school and college students away from tobacco. The bad effects of tobacco must be printed in books and exercise books. Parents and teachers must also play their role in keeping children and youth away from tobacco.

The Governor said the trend of smoking Hookahs among youth also needed to be checked.

World Lung Foundation president  Dr GR Khatri threw light on the conclusions of the survey 2016. Other dignitaries including DGP Anil K Raturi, Uttarakhand state subordinate services selection board chariman S.Raju, Secretary to the Governor Ravinath Raman and several other eminent persons were present.