ICMR highlights policy implementation gap in SLT control

16 April 2019 | News

Only 138 countries define smokeless tobacco (SLT) in their statutes

A paper published on 4rth April, 2019 in the Lancet Oncology journal describes the extent of the policy implementation gap in smokeless tobacco (SLT) control, discusses its key reasons and makes recommendations to bridge this gap.

Professor Ravi Mehrotra, Director of the National Institute of Cancer Prevention and Research (ICMR-NICPR), India and the lead author of the paper said “Smokeless tobacco use as a public health concern requires a comprehensive approach to deal with the challenges identified in the paper. In this regard, the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control Global Knowledge Hub on Smokeless Tobacco (https://untobaccocontrol.org/kh/smokeless-tobacco/) at ICMR-NICPR is committed to assisting all countries in implementing the key recommendations from the paper.”

Dr. Dhirendra Sinha from the School of Preventive Oncology (co-author) highlighted the global burden of SLT use and said that “smokeless tobacco kills over half a million adults worldwide”.

Prof Balram Bhargava, Secretary, Department of Health Research, Government of India and Director General ICMR, New Delhi mentioned that, “Given the extent and multiple faces of SLT in India (almost 65% of the world SLT users are in India), the need of the hour is to undertake a national mission to fight SLT use by bringing together all stakeholders under one umbrella. In this regard, ICMR envisages a comprehensive and scientific approach to reduce the SLT burden of the country’, he added.

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