Ban on gutka made 53% users quit: Study
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Gutka ban has led to a decrease in its consumption in the state, a study conducted by the Johns Hopkins Center for Communication Programs (CCP) and Centre for Communication and Change India (CCCI), New Delhi with support from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health's Institute for India for Global Tobacco Control (IGTC) and the World Health Organization (WHO) Country Office revealed. The study aimed to understand the impact of state laws that ban the sale and distribution of gutka.The study was conducted in eight states -Assam, Bihar, Delhi, Gujarat, Odisha, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and Karnataka.Stringent laws banning gutka have had a positive impact on the users in Maharashtra and many have agreed that they consume less since the ban was enforced.
Optimistic facts like these were revealed at the Tata Memorial Hospital when findings, specific to the state of Maharashtra, were released from a study that had been conducted across the country to understand the impact of state laws that ban the sale and distribution of gutka. Maharashtra's state report is part of a larger eight state research study undertaken last year. In Maharashtra, surveys were conducted in the districts of Thane and Mumbai with current and former gutka users and tobacco product retailers to determine the impact and effectiveness of the ban. In addition, observations of 60 retail environments and indepth interviews with government officials, enforcement officials and citizens working with civil society groups were conducted to find out different stakeholders' reaction to the ban. Considering the harmful effects of gutka and paan masala, the state government disal lowed the sale, manufacture, distribution and storage of ghutka from July 19, 2012. Of the respondents who con tinue to use prepackaged gutka, a considerable portion about 83 per cent reported that they consume less since the ban.
The study also showed that there is a universal agreement that gutka ban is good for the health of the youth in the country with 99 per cent responding affirma tively in support of the ban. Of the respondents who quit since ban, more than half 51 per cent reported to having attempted to stop using it after the ban came into place. Fifty three per cent of respondents agreed that gutka bans would help people to quit.
FDA commissioner Harshadeep Kamble said, “Though gutka is banned in Maharashtra, we recently seized huge a quantity of the product. During the investigations it was found that gutka is manufactured in Gujrat for its supply in Maharashtra.“
Optimistic facts like these were revealed at the Tata Memorial Hospital when findings, specific to the state of Maharashtra, were released from a study that had been conducted across the country to understand the impact of state laws that ban the sale and distribution of gutka. Maharashtra's state report is part of a larger eight state research study undertaken last year. In Maharashtra, surveys were conducted in the districts of Thane and Mumbai with current and former gutka users and tobacco product retailers to determine the impact and effectiveness of the ban. In addition, observations of 60 retail environments and indepth interviews with government officials, enforcement officials and citizens working with civil society groups were conducted to find out different stakeholders' reaction to the ban. Considering the harmful effects of gutka and paan masala, the state government disal lowed the sale, manufacture, distribution and storage of ghutka from July 19, 2012. Of the respondents who con tinue to use prepackaged gutka, a considerable portion about 83 per cent reported that they consume less since the ban.
The study also showed that there is a universal agreement that gutka ban is good for the health of the youth in the country with 99 per cent responding affirma tively in support of the ban. Of the respondents who quit since ban, more than half 51 per cent reported to having attempted to stop using it after the ban came into place. Fifty three per cent of respondents agreed that gutka bans would help people to quit.
FDA commissioner Harshadeep Kamble said, “Though gutka is banned in Maharashtra, we recently seized huge a quantity of the product. During the investigations it was found that gutka is manufactured in Gujrat for its supply in Maharashtra.“
Source: Mumbai Mirror, 5-11-2015
