Experts to discuss best practices for tobacco control

Chandigarh, January 19

A two-day national roundtable consultation on best practices for tobacco control in India will begin here on January 20.

The event will be organised by the Department of Community Medicine and School of Public Health, PGI, in collaboration with the International Union against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease.

Experts from various institutes and organisations working in various domains of tobacco control will take part in the consultation.

Since the introduction of the National Tobacco Control Programme (NTCP), there have been several operational challenges at the national and sub-national levels. The tobacco control fraternity has been making efforts in containing the tobacco epidemic through policy implementation and executing innovations in different domains of tobacco control. Due to these initiatives, India witnessed a six-point relative reduction in tobacco use in Global Adult Tobacco Survey-2. However, the best practices and innovations in the area of tobacco control go unnoticed due to the lack of their formal documentation.

Best practices in spheres ranging from implementation of the National Tobacco Control Programme, tobacco economics, tobacco cessation, interventions for youth, coalition building, role of civil society groups, integration with other national health programmes, behaviour strategies through gender perspective and tobacco industry interference will be discussed. Following this, a compendium of best practices in tobacco control in India will be formally prepared for wider dissemination and learning. — TNS