Will the Minister of HEALTH AND FAMILY WELFARE be pleased to state:
(a) whether the attention of the Government is drawn to the matter of cancer deaths occurred due to smoking habits in the country, every year;
(b) if so, the details thereof; and
(c) whether Government has any plan of implementing no-smoking policy among all employees to avoid such cancer deaths and if so, the details thereof?
ANSWER
THE MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF HEALTH AND
FAMILY WELFARE
(SHRI ASHWINI KUMAR CHOUBEY)
(a) & (b): As per National Centre for Disease Informatics and Research-National Cancer Registry Programme data, the estimated mortality of cancer cases in India, due to all risk factors including tobacco use in the years 2016, 2017 and 2018 is 732921, 766348 and 801374 respectively. Projected mortality cases for India were computed by applying Mumbai Mortality/Incidence (MI) ratio to the projected incidence cancer cases.
(c): Section (4) of the Cigarettes and other Tobacco Products (Prohibition of Advertisement and Regulation of Trade and Commerce, Production, Supply and Distribution) Act, 2003 (COTPA 2003) prohibits smoking in public places provided that in a hotel having thirty rooms or a restaurant having seating capacity of thirty persons or more and in the airports, a separate provision for smoking area or space may be made.
Public place means any place to which the public have access, whether as of right or not, and includes auditorium, hospital buildings, railway waiting room, amusement centres, restaurants, public offices, court buildings, education institutions, libraries, public conveyances and the like which are visited by general public but does not include any open space. Public place shall also include work places, shopping malls and cinema halls