Saturday, July 4, 2009

Mizoram Spends Rs 70 cr On Tobacco


A
izawl, Jul 3 : Mizoram Chief Secretary and chairman of the state Tobacco Control Society Vanhela Pachuau on Thursday said that Mizoram spent around Rs 70 crore on tobacco products per annum.

Pachuau, addressing a press conference, based his calculation on the basis of the study conducted by the Presbyterian Church in 2004 which said that 77 per cent of the church’s over five lakh members in the state consumed tobacco products and spent around Rs Nine lakh per day.

Dr Jane Ralte, head of the Tobacco Cessation Clinic said that 73.7 per cent of men in Mizoram smoked as against the national figure of 32.7 per cent while there are 16.1 per cent female smokers in the state as aginst the national figure of 1.4 per cent.

Ralte added that Mizoram topped inhypopharynx (throat cancer) and tongue cancer in the world and the two dreaded cancers were mainly caused by tobacco products.

The lone Lengpui Airport near here would be made the first ever smoke-free airport in the country, Pachuau said.

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