Punjab health minister asks people to stop liquor intake

Chandigarh, Dec 18 (UNI) State Health Minister Laxmi Kanta Chawla today attributed the increase in cancer cases in Punjab to the dietary habits of the people of the state, besides the use of pesticides, which had shown an upward trend in recent years.

''If you leave liquor, tobacco and do not take non-vegetarian items, cancer will be controlled'', she said while replying to querries by members who expressed concern on a recent PGI, Chandigarh report on the increasing cancer cases in the state during Question Hour in the State Assembly.

Ms Chawla also suggested that farmers should not wash the empty cans or bags of pesticides in canals as this virtually poisons the water that flows through the state.

Replying to a question by Ajit Singh Shant, Ms Chawla said there was a proposal under consideration of the government to set up a cancer hospital within the complex of Bathinda Civil Hospital under Public-Private Partnership mode. The member had expressed concern over the increasing cancer cases in the Malwa belt of the State.

UNI