Harsh Vardhan bats for total ban on tobacco, its products

On the occasion of "World No-Tobacco Day", Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan took to Twitter to express his views. The minister said that as an ENT surgeon he had seen first hand how tobacco destroys families. He said that he was in favour of a complete ban on tobacco and its products to "nip the evil in the bud".

New Delhi: Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan on the World No-Tobacco Day on Sunday said the battle against tobacco was a personal fight for him and he wanted total ban on it and its products.

"The battle against tobacco is a personal fight for me. As an ENT surgeon, I've been first-hand witness to how it destroys not just the user, but the entire family. I am a votary for a complete ban on tobacco and its products on the World No Tobacco Day to nip the evil in the bud," he tweeted.

According to the World Health Organisation, every year the tobacco industry spends over $9 billion to advertise its products. Increasingly, it's targeting youth with nicotine and tobacco products to replace the 8 million people that its products kill every year.

This year's World No Tobacco Day campaign focuses on protecting children and young people from exploitation by the tobacco and related industry.

The WHO said even during the global pandemic, the tobacco and nicotine industry persisted by pushing products that limited people's ability to fight coronavirus and recover from the disease.

The industry offered free branded masks and doorstep delivery during quarantine and lobbied for their products to be listed as 'essential'. Over 40 million young people, aged 13-15 years, had started to use tobacco, it added.

IANS