Excelsior Correspondent
Srinagar, Aug 21: Aiming to curtail the increased incidence of tobacco use among the students, the State Education Department in north Kashmir has asked its officials to ensure a complete ban on the sale of tobacco products around school premises.
Chief Education Officer (CEO) Bandipore, today issued an order asking all the principals and headmasters of schools to ensure the ban on sale of tobacco products to minors in all the educational institutions.
“All Principals and Headmasters have been advised to submit a monthly report to the CEO Bandipore office for follow up so that the order which has come into force with immediate effect is implemented strictly,” the order said.
The order also directed the officials to ensure display of ‘No Smoking Sign Boards’ in the school premises.
According to Global Youth Tobacco Survey (GYTS) carried out by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW), Government of India conducted amongst the students in India, reveals that 14.6% of 13 -15 year old students are using tobacco in India. Of those, 8.1% of students smoked tobacco. As many as 11% of all male students surveyed were found to be users of smoking or smokeless tobacco, while 6% of female students used smokeless tobacco and 3.7% smoked tobacco.
According to the MoHFW, nearly 37% children in India initiate smoking before the age of 10 and each day, 5500 children begin tobacco use. The findings of these studies highlight the need for targeted interventions among youth in general and students in particular, especially given the marketing overdrive of the tobacco industry to promote the use of tobacco among youth.
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