Daijiworld Media Network – Bengaluru (MS)

Bengaluru, Oct 7: A report said that Karnataka stands on the top of the list of states that consume the highest number of beedi and cigarettes.

Tobacco control study was undertaken in six states of Karnataka, Assam, Gujarat, Odisha, Uttar Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir. In Karnataka the percentage of tobacco consumption is around 63.68%. The report says that the implementation of tobacco control is not effective in these states.

The report also says that the possibility of urban dwellers smoking cigarettes is more than those living in rural areas of the country.

According to the study, 58% of urban residents smoke cigarettes while 43% of rural people make use of tobacco. The percentage of smokers above the age of 18 is highest in Karnataka with 63.68%. In Odisha the percentage for the same age group is 62.5% while in Assam, Jammu and Kashmir and Gujarat the percentage is 48.37, 45.95 and 33.18 respectively.

Among the consumers of tobacco, beedi smokers are highest in Karnataka with a percentile of 36.32. In the consumption of SLT (Smoke Less Tobacco), Gujarat tops the list with 69.16%. Uttar Pradesh is in the last spot with 24.2%.

The percentage of indoor smokers in Karnataka is around 53.64%. The surprising fact is that the WHO brought WHO-FCTC to control tobacco three years ago. But so far there is no concrete report on its progress.