Bengaluru, May 31 (DHNS): Around 4.5 lac people have been fined in the past four years for smoking in public in the state, according to the Union Health Ministry. This year alone, Rs 1.6 crore has been collected in fines from 1.5 lac smokers.
“One in three people consumes tobacco in Karnataka, of whom 20% chew tobacco. It is a major concern today in the state,” said Dr Vishal Rao, Head and Neck Cancer Surgeon and Member of the High Power Committee for Tobacco Control, government of Karnataka.
Of all the tobacco products consumed in the state, cigarettes contribute only 4%, while 8% are beedis and chewing tobacco makes up 20%.
“Around 30% of the people who consume tobacco will die prematurely. Every year, 10 lac cases of cancer are diagnosed in India. Of these 40% to 50% are attributed to 18 kinds of cancers that are known,” said Dr Rao.
“We see around 15,000 to 20,000 patients every year who suffer due to tobacco consumption. Around 75% of these patients suffer from advanced stages of diseases,” said Dr Vijay Agarwal, consultant of Medical Oncology, HCG Hospital.
Dr Rao said that around 50,000 cases of cancer are detected each year in the state and at any given point of time, there are 1.5 lac cases. These include women, especially the urban poor, who chew tobacco, he said. “Chewing tobacco is not considered a taboo among these women and a lot of this is cultural. Many tobacco marketing industries take advantage of this too,” said Dr Rao.
Experts in the field consider empowerment of panchayat development officers (PDO) who penalise offenders under provisions of the Cigarette and Other Tobacco Products Act (COTPA) 2003, as a unique strategy to control tobacco consumption in villages.
“Before the government order, it was common to see smokers in front of shops and schools in villages. We were helpless and could not intervene as we were not authorised to stop them. Now, after the drive was enforced eight months back, 70% of the shops have already complied with the rules,” said PDO from Kodagu district, Ashok Kumar.
Dr Rao terms the drive against smoking in public places as “nicotine displacement therapy” as the offenders are believed to get scared once they get caught by the police and as a result start secreting adrenaline. He said it is the same as consuming tobacco as nicotine releases adrenalin. As a result, there is less urge to consume tobacco.
According to the doctor, tobacco industries should be made accountable for tobacco usage among people and there should be more drives to implement the law.