The FDA had imposed a ban on tobacco and related products — khaini, zarda, paan masala and flavoured tobacco — five years ago.
THE new notification of Maharashtra FDA, dated July 17, has shocked public health experts and the medical fraternity because it has permitted the sale of flavoured supari or areca nut, popularly known as pan masala. The notification states that while a one-member committee will decide on the ban of scented areca nut, the sale will be allowed.
“WHO and several studies in India have proved beyond doubt that pan masala causes serious health hazards, including mouth and throat cancer. All the research material has already been submitted to the FDA several times for the last five years. Our state is bound to become a laughing stock if the pan masala ban isn’t continued,” said Professor Pankaj Chaturvedi, Tata Memorial Hospital.
Incidentally, Maharashtra was the first state to ban gutkha and pan masala in July 2012. This was challenged by the gutkha industry in the Bombay High Court, but they didn’t get any relief from the court. The ban on pan masala was enforced because of the special power given by the Food Safety Act to the Food Commissioner, to ban a harmful substance for a period of maximum one year.
Encouraged by the success of the ban, successive FDA commissioners renewed the notification and extended the ban on flavoured supari (without tobacco). This ban was renewed with a new notification each year.
On July 1 last year, concerned individuals and institutions had petitioned Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, urging him to ban flavoured supari permanently and enforce the ban strictly. The group included the director of the Tata Memorial Hospital; 27 oncologists of the Maharashtra Cancer Warriors, dean of the Governmental Dental College; president of the Indian Medical Association; secretary of the Indian Dental Association; CPAA, Salaam Bombay Foundation and V Care.
Dr Kailash Sharma, director (academics), Tata Memorial Hospital, wrote in his letter “We sincerely urge you to continue the ban on flavoured chewing tobacco and flavored supari (pan masala) permanently to save our future generation. Currently, the ban is applicable for only one year and it has to be renewed annually.
Ashok Dhoble, secretary of the Indian Dental Association, said, “The epidemic of mouth cancer cannot be curtailed without a comprehensive prohibition of selling these lethal products freely as packaged mouth fresheners. We sincerely request that you will use your good offices to continue the ban on these smokeless tobacco and supari products to prevent premature deaths in our country.”
Several oncologists from different districts, under the aegis of the Maharashtra Cancer Warriors, as well as deans of dental colleges have also written to the Chief Minister and commissioner of FDA, seeking a permanent ban.
Y K Sapru of CPAA had written to the CM: “This is a request and an appeal not just from us, but from other NGOs like us who are involved in tobacco control, and also from thousands of families and patients who have gone through the agony of tobacco-related cancers, and from hundreds of thousands of unsuspecting youths whose lives are at stake.”
Tshering Bhutia of Salaam Bombay Foundation wrote: “In Maharashtra, the health of children and youth have been benefited by the ban on pan masala. We have been working in 15,000 zilla parishad schools and 220 schools in Mumbai. Please make it permanent.”
As per the Global Adult Tobacco Survey 2010, 27.6 per cent of Maharashtra’s adult population was chewing tobacco (jarda, khaini, mava, kharra, masheri, gudakhu, paan, gutkha, pan masala). In terms of absolute numbers, nearly 2 crore people were using smokeless tobacco. Most of the consumers use smokeless tobacco along with supari (betel nut or areca nut). This is causing epidemic proportion of fatal diseases such as heart attacks and strokes, apart from cancers.
Mouth cancer is the most common cancer among men in Maharashtra due to rampant supari chewing habit.
No comments:
Post a Comment