Ramadoss to campaign on 'Smoke Free Campus'

{image-Anbumani Ramadoss_22072008.jpg news.oneindia.in}New Delhi, Jul 22: Union Minister for Health and Family Welfare Dr. Anbumani Ramadoss will give another push to his relentless campaign gainst tobacco when he will attend Delhi University Students Union (DUSU) programme 'Smoke Free Campus' on Tuesday, July, 22.

DUSU is organising the programme in the light of new academic session as the campaign aims to bring the movement of smoke free campus to the freshers. The Delhi University was declared 'No Smoking Zone' on February 14 in a function inaugurated by Union Minister Mani Shankar Aiyar. The function assumes significance in the context of Minister's announcement of complete ban on smoking in public places from October 2.

"The cigarette and other tobacco products (Prohibition and Advertisement and Regulation of Trade and Commerce, Production Supply and Distribution") Act, 2003 is one of the most comprehensive tobacco control act in the world.

Rules to implement the law have been notified and revised to expand the definition of public places to include all work places, shopping malls and cinema halls. The State Governments are being sensitized to accord due priority to the implementation of the law.

Government of India has launched National Tobacco Control Programme (NTCP) in the 11th five-year plan to implement anti-tobacco laws. chool programme is one of the crucial parts of the national programme targeting school children as well as college going youth. India is one of the pioneer signatories of WHO - Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC).

Indian legislative efforts have been one of the most advanced and strict in implementing the framework. Delhi is one of the nine States to be covered under National Tobacco Control Programme and also to be given consultant under Bloomberg Global Initiative. India is one of the five focus countries under the initiative.

ANI