Seminar on Tobacco-free Childhood
India has become the capital of oral cancer in the world being attributed by tobacco. More than 2500 people are passing away everyday which is bigger than the deaths caused by HIV/AIDS and malaria put together. Thus, tobacco is a serious public health subject these days.Tobacco Free Childhood, is a campaign of Salaam Jeevan under its initiative “Mission Answer to Cancer”. The objective of this campaign is to create awareness and initiate advocacy towards making the childhood tobacco free and creating tobacco free schools. Thus, awareness drives are conducted in slums, villages, schools, colleges, universities and other public/ private institutions to sensitise the masses not to send the children to buy tobacco stuff.
The Indian tobacco control legislation COTPA, 2003 under its section-6 prohibits the sale of tobacco stuff to and by minors. This section again makes the provision of making the educational institutions tobacco free. Under the campaign “Tobacco Free Childhood”, the organization tries to create public pressure groups to translate this legislation into practice. Similarly, petitions are filled in different Child Welfare Committee to intervene for ensuring tobacco free childhood. During the awareness drives, the participants are well trained on harmful impacts of tobacco, identifying pre cancer lessons, understanding the anti tobacco legislation, quitting process of addiction and a pledge is taken for making the childhood nearby us to be really a tobacco free. This seminar will certainly create the understanding of harmful impacts of tobacco among the learners of child protection, they can be sensitized on the issues of tobacco addiction by the minors.
A report by Global Tobacco Atlas survey has revealed that more than six lakhs Indian children are into smoking which is really a shocking and alarming. This seminar will help the participants to understand various diversions of tobacco addiction and pulling factors for the children. The learners will have a scope to understand the preliminary steps of counselling techniques of how to give up tobacco. This seminar is an open forum to discuss various issues of tobacco addiction.