Rayees Ahmad Kumar
The history of World Anti-Tobacco Day dates back to 1987 when the World Health Organization(WHO) passed a resolution calling for a day dedicated to highlighting the health risks associated with tobacco use. It is observed on May 31st every year to raise awareness about the harmful effects of tobacco use and to promote policies that reduce tobacco consumption.
At union and state levels, multiple legislations have been created to check the unabated use of tobacco and other deleterious and noxious products. But in public places like hospitals, hotels and restaurants, educational institutions, public transport and playing fields, the reckless and persistent use of tobacco and other unhealthy products is most concerning as well as worrying. In public transport, drivers and conductors are seen smoking, thoughtlessly and irresponsibly not considering about it’s ill-effects and adverse impacts.
Going back to the history of tobacco, it is asserted that the Christopher Columbus along with his companions, while landing on Tobago island in 1492, found the local people using tobacco leaves for pleasure. Since then the habit of smoking has spread all over the world, and it has assumed the shape of an industry but at the cost of human health.
Researchers have come up with some astonishing facts, according to them tobacco smoke contains over 4000 chemicals, out of these 43 are carcinogenic i.e cancer causing, which include some chemicals like polycyclic hydrocarbons. It also contains ammonia, formaldehyde and oxides of carbon which are thought to be cellular irritants. Carbon monoxide, one of the dangerous culprits reducing oxygen carrying capacity of haemoglobin is also found in tobacco. However the major component, most harmful and affecting the nervous system of humans is the Nicotine, which is highly addictive, it enhances heart rate and causes hypertension. It’s story doesn’t end here, the tar in tobacco smoke is responsible for causing Lung cancer and smokers are ten times more likely to die from lung cancer than those not smoking.
During pregnancy, smoking can increase the risk of low birth weight and even premature babies. Passive smoker are also at high risks of developing many diseases and it is here the need to check the smoking at public places arises. It is a silent killer which needs an immediate check. Besides making stringent laws to curb the menace of smoking, through strong campaigning all the world, people are made aware about the dangerous effects of smoking in the long run.
Alongside our elderly people, youngsters are becoming increasingly addictive to smoking, wasting the hard earned money of their parents in buying costly cigarette packs, completely neglecting the warning lines “Cigarette smoking is injurious to health” “Smoking causes Cancer” written in bold letters on each pack. Smokers apart from injuring themselves, are an imminent threat to whole public, when smoking is freely allowed at public places.
Reports of altercations between smokers and non-smokers have appeared both in electronic and social media in the past, but non seriousness of the law enforcing agencies to ensure full enforcement of these laws have given them a free hand to put the human health at stake. Drivers and conductors are seen smoking in public transport while ferrying dozens of passengers, people dining in hotels and restaurants are enjoying cigarette puffs while dozens of non-smokers around them and also a big chunk on shop fronts relishing hookah without thinking about it’s chilling effects and disastrous consequences.
To put a blanket ban on sale and consumption of tobacco and other related products, it is crucial to get the laws implemented at grassroot levels, giving awareness to reduce ignorance among the people and prohibiting children to have an easy access to such things both at home and school.
Religious clerics, teachers and social activists can play a big role in forbidding local people as well as non-locals from consuming tobacco, Gutkha, Nevla and Paan the smokeless tobacco products. It isn’t out of place to mention here that, seminars, debates and awareness camps are conducted each year on No Tobacco Day, in educational institutions, health institutions and other places but to make all our strides effective and result oriented, collective efforts at individual and community level needs to be initiated at an earliest.
In educational institutions, at morning assembly, awareness regarding ill-effects of smoking and tobacco products can help in disseminating a powerful message to curb this ill-practice. So to safeguard human health, instead of hating smokers, we must teach them how smoking is injurious and bad for the health besides imploring and insisting them to quit it.
Lastly, we all must inculcate a civic sense to discourage smoking at all public places and restrict sale of tobacco and cigarette products near places where big gatherings are witnessed on daily basis.
(The author hails from Qazigund and can be reached at [email protected])
