Panaji: Anti-tobacco watchdog, National Organisation for Tobacco Eradication (NOTE), on Saturday urged Goa government to implement Tobacco Vendor Licencing in Goa to protest the youths.
NOTE Secretary Shekhar Salkar said that nearly 10 per cent of Goans use tobacco in one form or other, which is alarming.
“With an objective to control the usage of tobacco in the state by the youth and children the National Organisation for Tobacco Eradication (NOTE) and Delhi based Consumer VOICE on this National Youth Day is urging government to implement the rules of tobacco Vendor Licensing to protect youth from tobacco products,” Salkar said.
Salkar said tobacco use imposes enormous health and economic burden on the country.
“Each year, over one million Indians die from tobacco-related diseases in India. The GATS data shows prevalence of tobacco consumption is increase compare to GATS-I,” he said.
Salkar said that the global Adult Tobacco Survey 2 (GATS 2) shows 9.7 per cent percent of adults in Goa consume tobacco in some form or the other. “Vendor licensing is needs to be implemented to keep the younger generation from the influence of tobacco products,” he said.
Salkar explained that vendor licensing is authorizing a business to engage in tangible retail sales of tobacco from a shop, sidewalk stand, a pushcart, a shop, a motor vehicle.
