Looking to take the no tobacco message to West Khasi Hills for an entire month, the ‘My Meghalaya, Tobacco-Free Meghalaya’ campaign was launched in Nongstoin today.
World No Tobacco Day is observed every year on May 31. This year’s theme in the state is looking to make Meghalaya tobacco-free.
While there is widespread awareness that tobacco is harmful to the body, what is not well appreciated is the harm that tobacco does to the environment and in pushing below the poverty line, a press release stated.
Speaking at the launch, Dr Lana Lyngdoh Nongbri, the State Nodal Officer of the National Tobacco Control Programme at the Department of Health, said, “Tobacco not only kills its best customers but also destroys our environment.”
Meghalaya’s tobacco consumption is at appalling levels, with 47 percent of those aged 15 and above using it in some way or the other, Dr Lyngdoh Nongbri said, and 8,000 people a year in the state die because of it. Globally, it contributes to 70 lakh deaths annually and 13.5 lakh in India.
The campaign was thus launched asking all schools to carry out two activities – a rally against tobacco and a signature campaign. It is part of the Tobacco Free Educational Institutions programme that was launched in the state in March 2021 in collaboration with Sambandh Health Foundation.
Any impression that the tobacco industry is environment-friendly or environment-neutral “is a sham!” the press release said forcefully.
“Tobacco is the world’s single-most reversible cause of death. About 560 cigarette manufacturing facilities in the world produce more than 6 trillion cigarettes every year,” the release added. “It has consequences such as deforestation, the use of fossil fuels, and the dumping or leaking of waste products. Maximum litter is caused by the butts of smoked cigarettes, which are not biodegradable and poison the environment for years.”
Appreciating the efforts of the schools, West Khasi Hills Deputy Commissioner Garod LSN Dykes described tobacco as a gateway to more serious drugs and added that six out of the 17 self-development goals are impacted by tobacco and that the drug is a leading risk factor for four non-communicable diseases.
The no tobacco campaign is meant to sensitise the students and community to bring about the reduced consumption of tobacco.
Last year, 1,062 schools in the district and 73,671 students took part in World No Tobacco Day rallies, with 6.63 lakh signatures collected.
