Press Releases

Press Release dated 30 August 2013 

Implement COTPA effectively, recommends study

Incidence of tobacco use high in rural Kerala

Thiruvananthapuram, August 30 – The first-ever study on the incidence of tobacco use in India, even while signalling caution and determined action, has recommended effective implementation of Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act (COTPA), 2003 to tackle the worrisome incidence of tobacco use.

The study conducted in rural areas of Thiruvananthapuram district brings out that while 21.1 percent of young men (15-24 years) are prone to the smoking habit, 22.2 percent of men between the ages of 55 and 64 gravitated towards smokeless tobacco products over seven years. 

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Press Release dated 4 August 2013

‘Tobacco at the root of all societal ills’

Thiruvananthapuram, August 4 – A workshop organised by Trivandrum City Police on School Protection Groups emerged as a forum for discussion on child rights, and brought out the need for collective efforts to protect and safeguard the rights of children.

More than a thousand people including students, teachers, parents, police officers and ward councillors were present in the workshop on August 3 that also brought out the human face of the police.

Inaugurating the workshop, Shri A Shajahan, Director of Public Instructions said that the society has a responsibility to protect children from factors that infringe upon their rights. “New media has made it possible for children to have access to information of various kinds.  Activities that mandate parental guidance or ought to be done with parents’ knowledge are available to children readily. It is our responsibility to identify and remove agents that lead children to these.” 

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Press Release dated 21 July 2013

School-based tobacco control reduces use among adolescents, says study

Thiruvananthapuram, July 21 – Even as schools are working to reactivate Hon’ble Kerala High Court’s directions on tobacco control in the new academic year, a recent review paper in the prestigious Indian Journal of Paediatrics has concluded that school-based tobacco control programmes have a significant potential in reducing tobacco use prevalence among adolescents.

The paper, based on review of literature on school-based tobacco control programmes, has brought out that overall tobacco use among school-going adolescents decreased by 17% after intervention in a study that covered 14,063 students from 32 schools in Delhi and Chennai. The intervention included measures such as behavioural classroom curricula, school posters, parental involvement and peer-led activism.

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Press Release dated 18 May 2013

Kozhikode Rural Police tightens action against public smokers

Kozhikode, May 18 – Kozhikode Rural police has tightened its noose on public smokers, registering a 12-fold increase in the number of public smokers fined/challaned in March over February. Latest figures regarding violators of public smoking ban brought out in the Kerala Police website shows that 595 persons were fined/challaned in March, as against 48 in the previous month.

For a six-month period starting October 2012 to March this year, the Kozhikode Rural police fined/challaned a total of 844 persons under Section 4, of the Indian tobacco control law called COTPA 2003, which prohibits smoking in public places. Police action against public smokers netted over Rs 1 lakh by way of fines.

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Press Release dated 28 April 2013

Tobacco Control by Kerala Police nets 19.2 lakhs

Thiruvananthapuram, April 28 – Proactive tobacco control action taken by the Kerala Police has brought Rs 19.2 lakhs to the exchequer in just five months from last October to February 2013.

As many as 11,299 persons were fined/challaned for violating the provisions of the Indian tobacco control law COTPA, 2003 during the aforesaid period. Police have also stringently acted against violators of the ban on smoking in public places; a total 9,885 persons were fined/challaned across 20 police districts, netting Rs. 15.75 lakhs. For the sake of administrative convenience, 14 districts in the state have been grouped under 20 police districts. 

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Press Release dated 21 March 2013

Bidi use increases Kerala’s most common cancer risks: Study

Thiruvananthapuram, March 21 - India’s first cohort studies have conclusively proven that bidi smoking presents a many fold increase in the incidence of Kerala’s most prevalent cancers among men.

Separate studies on the impact of bidi smoking on lung and oral cancers, and cancers of larynx and hypo pharynx in men between the age group of 30-84 in Karunagappally of Kollam district show that bidi – unfiltered tobacco flakes rolled in tendu leaf and tied with thread - is indeed among the most harmful smoking products.

The cohort study on bidi and lung cancer, covering a total of 65,829 men, found that bidi smokers had a 3.9-fold increase in lung cancer incidence when compared to those who never smoked bidis. 

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Press Release dated 4 February 2013

State-wide cancer awareness programme inaugurated

Thiruvananthapuram, Feb 4 – Fear of the disease could be a major reason for many cancer deaths, said His Excellency Governor of Mizoram Shri Vakkom B Purushothaman while inaugurating the state-wide awareness programme on the occasion of World Cancer Day here today.

Choked with emotion, the Governor told hundreds of students of St.Mary’s Higher Secondary School, Pattom here, “When my mother was 80 years, she underwent an operation for breast cancer. On the advice of her doctor, we did not tell our mother about her condition though she was on medications. She lived without any complications for three years. A chance remark made by a relative about her disease however took here through a phase of fear, and she passed away within two months of that knowledge.”

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Press Release dated 3 February 2013

State-level awareness programme to dispel cancer myths

Thiruvananthapuram, Feb 3 – The word ‘cancer’ that evokes gory images of pain and trauma is surrounded by several myths such as ‘cancer is a death sentence’ and ‘cancer is my fate’. As experts point out, cancer need not be a final word as early detection and treatment have shown to bring improved outcomes for patients.

It is to dispel many of the myths associated with cancer that an awareness programme is being initiated here on the occasion of World Cancer Day, February 4. Swasthi Charitable Foundation, a voluntary social welfare organisation and Tobacco Free Kerala, a coalition led by Regional Cancer Centre (RCC) for tobacco control in the state have joined hands to organise this programme. 

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Press Release dated 30 January 2013

Tobacco induced morbidity: 502 million dollars drained as indirect costs alone

Thiruvananthapuram, Jan 30 – A whopping US$398 million is drained from the country as indirect morbidity costs on smoked tobacco use alone, according to a review paper in the current issue of Indian Journal of Medical and Paediatric Oncology – the official journal of Indian Society of Medical and Paediatric Oncology.

The indirect morbidity costs on smokeless tobacco products in India is another $104 million, cites the paper named ‘An overview of the tobacco problem in India’. Indirect morbidity costs have been explained as cost of caregivers and value of work loss due to illness.

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Press Release dated 2 December 2012


Oommen Chandy writes to PM for a country-wide gutkha ban

Tobacco Free Kerala welcomes CM’s intervention

Thiruvananthapuram, Dec 2: Continuing his unflinching efforts for the cause of tobacco control in Kerala, the Kerala Chief Minister Shri Oommen Chandy has written to the Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh for a country-wide ban on gutkha.

In a fervent appeal, Shri Chandy has requested the Prime Minister to “ban gutkha products containing tobacco and nicotine in all states of the country. By doing so, India will not only be able to save millions of children and youth - our productive resources of the future  - but also send a clear signal of our commitment to public health.” 

Thanking the Prime Minister for his leadership in banning gutkha in 14 states of India, besides the Union Territory of Chandigarh, Shri Chandy wrote, “This is a momentous achievement as we have successfully crossed the half-way mark, and have only 14 more states and 6 Union Territories to address.”


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Press Release dated 20 November 2012


India falls short of FCTC guidelines on tobacco products’ packaging

Thiruvananthapuram, November 20 – A new report has revealed that pictorial warnings in tobacco products in India do not meet the internationally stipulated size parameters, at a time when health warnings on tobacco products have come to be recognised as a cost-effective means of communication.

Called ‘Cigarette Package Health Warnings: International Status Report’, it points out that pictorial warnings in packets of tobacco products in India fall short of the stipulated 50% of the display area, even after two rounds of revisions of warnings in 2009 and 2011.

The report released in the Conference of Parties to the WHO Framework Convention of Tobacco Control (FCTC) that concluded in Seoul, South Korea on November 17, shows that health warnings in cigarette packets in India only cover 40% of the front face of the packet. 

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Press Release dated 8 November 2012


Poor twice as likely to smoke as rich in India, reveals study

Thiruvananthapuram, November 8: The poorest men in India are twice more likely to smoke as the richest, reveals a recent study to assess the socio-economic inequality in smoking in low and middle income countries.

The study based on data from the World Health Survey (WHS) of the World Health Organisation (WHO) found that 46.7 per cent of the poorest men smoke in India as against 21.8 per cent of the richest men.

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Press Release dated 28 September 2012


Teachers and parents should quit smoking, says Padma Shri Dr G Vijayaraghavan

World Heart Day on September 29

Thiruvananthapuram, Sept 28 – As we set out to observe World Heart Day on September 29, internationally acclaimed cardiologist Padma Shri Dr G Vijayaraghavan says that teachers and parents should stop smoking to eradicate this habit from the community, even as he dwells on the irreparable damage that tobacco use causes to the heart.

“Nearly 60 per cent of the patients in Intensive Cardiac Care Unit of KIMS are current or old smokers. More than 30 per cent have smoked over 2 packs a day for more than 10 years,” says Dr Vijayaraghavan, Vice Chairman and Director Medical Services of KIMS Hospital here. 

The soft-spoken cardiologist, who holds Fellowships of the American Heart Association and the Royal College of Physicians, UK, among others, narrates cases of tobacco-induced heart conditions, which underlines the acute and chronic effects that tobacco has on humanity.

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Press Release dated 20 September 2012

Cigarette smoking can cause Alzheimer’s disease

World Alzheimer’s Day tomorrow

Thiruvananthapuram, September 20: Recent research has demonstrated that cigarette smoking can lead to cognitive impairment, even as the world gears to observe World Alzheimer’s Day on September 21.

Alzheimer’s disease (AD), the most common form of dementia, is characterised by progressive deterioration in intellect including memory, thinking, learning, orientation, language, comprehension and judgement. The impact of the disease could be so harsh that patients are even unable to carry out everyday chores.

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Press Release dated 24 August 2012

Smokers may find relief from green tea, say studies

Thiruvananthapuram, August 24 - When the urge strikes to puff a smoke, take a sip of green tea instead! Research-based evidence has it consumption of green tea may help in smoking cessation, besides reducing the risk of smoking-induced lung cancers.

Even though public smoking has been banned in Kerala as in the country via the tobacco control legislation called COTPA enacted in 2003, smoking continues to be rampant in public places including bus stops and cinema halls.

Around 21.9 per cent of Kerala’s population continue to be addicted to smoking and in the process, making themselves vulnerable to a wide variety of diseases such as cancer, heart diseases, stroke and osteoporosis. 

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Press Release dated 18 August 2012


Say No to Smoking for Excelling in Sports

Thiruvananthapuram, August 18 –   Factors for excellence in sports have once again come under the spotlight, even as India celebrates its record-setting medal haul – two silvers and four bronzes - at the London Olympics 2012.  

While it is not hard to understand that years of dedicated hard work go behind putting up a stellar performance in the competitive sports arena, domain experts aver that success calls for regimented training, strict adherence to diet and abstinence from damaging vices such as smoking and other forms of tobacco use.

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Press Release dated 23 June 2012

Fifty per cent of head and neck cancers are smoking related


Thiruvananthapuram, June 23 – Over 50 per cent of head and neck cancers are due to smoking, reveals a new study published in PubMed, the online repository of studies in life sciences and biomedical topics, maintained by the US National Institutes of Health.

In the study involving 101,182 subjects during a Prostate, Lung, Colorectal, and Ovarian (PLCO) cancer screening trial, it was brought out that 50.5 per cent of head and neck cancer cases are attributed to tobacco use.

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Press Release dated 30 May 2012

Gutkha use impairs reproductive and sexual health

Tobacco Free Kerala welcomes ban


Thiruvananthapuram, May 30 – The recent ban on gutkha and pan masala not just saves people from the dreadful emperor of maladies – cancer - but also promises a blissful marital life to Keralites.

Though much has been said about smokeless tobacco-induced cancers, it is a lesser known fact that use of these products may lead to impaired reproductive health and sexual dysfunction among males and females.

According to the Global Adult Tobacco (GAT) Survey 2009-10 conducted in coordination with the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, 13.1 per cent of males and 8.5 per cent of females consume smokeless tobacco products such as gutkha and pan masala in Kerala.

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Press Release dated 9 May 2012


Whither onscreen anti-smoking laws, ask experts

Thiruvananthapuram, May 9 – Coming in the wake of the recent Kerala High Court direction against depiction of tobacco-related scenes in films and other visual media, the decision of the Union Ministry of Information & Broadcasting (I&B), to keep the tobacco-free movies and television rules issued by the Union Health Ministry in abeyance, has clearly thrown caution to the wind, say legal experts.

In a country where smoking kills an estimated one million a year, and where the film and television media have a religious following, the current decision of the I&B Ministry – giving in to pressure from the Indian film industry - is contingent to the interest of public health, they point out.

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Press Release dated 27 April 2012

Research identifies new carcinogen in smokeless tobacco

Thiruvananthapuram, April 27: New research has, for the first time, identified a specific oral cancer causing chemical in smokeless tobacco products - a harmful habit that gives a sense of temporary elation to 10.7 per cent of adult users in Kerala. 

Strong oral carcinogen

Though smokeless tobacco products were earlier known to have cancer-causing properties, this study is significant as it has found that smokeless tobacco products contain a strong oral carcinogen - a chemical called (S)-N'-nitrosonornicotine, or (S)-NNN. The lead researcher Dr.Silvia Balbo of the Masonic Cancer Centre of the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis, USA presented the study, funded by National Institutes of Health grant, at the recently held Annual Meeting of American Association for Cancer Research.

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Press Release dated 21 April 2012

Smoking aggravates H1N1 risk

Thiruvananthapuram, April 21 - Here’s another powerful reason why smokers in the state must quit this dangerous habit. Several studies over the years have unequivocally concluded that smokers face an increased risk of Influenza A (H1N1), the potent virus that incapacitated hundreds in India and Kerala over the past couple of years.

Kerala, where a state wide alert was sounded recently on H1N1 infection, has a sizeable smoking population. According to the figures of the Global Adult Tobacco Survey (2009-10), 13.4 per cent of adults smoke cigarettes or bidis in Kerala.

The state reported 3112 H1N1 cases, including loss of 121 precious lives as of 2010, as per figures of the Directorate of Health Services, Government of Kerala.

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Press Release dated 2 April 2012

Tobacco major cause of cancer deaths, research shows

Thiruvananthapuram, Apr 2: Health experts in Kerala are hoping that a nationwide cancer mortality study which underscores the massive health burden of tobacco will galvanise the state and central governments into action and prevent hundreds of thousands of avoidable deaths every year.

Tobacco use is estimated to have caused nearly 120,000 deaths across India in 2010, according to research carried out by the Toronto-based Centre for Global Health Research (CGHR) in partnership with Mumbai’s Tata Memorial Hospital.

Nearly 600,000 Indians die of cancer every year – over seven in 10 deaths (71%) taking place in the 30-69 age group, the most productive period of a person’s life, says the report published in the latest issue of the Lancet medical journal.

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Press Release dated 23 March 2012

Keen To Quit Smoking – Seek Your Doctor

Thiruvananthapuram, March 23: More than drugs, it is advice and counselling by a doctor/health worker that plays a vital role in smoking cessation, reveals a study conducted in Palakkad district of Kerala.

Coming in the wake of renewed awareness that tobacco consumption is a major disease-causing factor, the study seeks to compare the effectiveness of doctor‟s advice and doctor‟s advice followed by health-worker cessation counselling in Primary Health Centres (PHCs).

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Press Release dated 5 February 2012

Fight cancer together, say experts

Thiruvananthapuram, Feb 5 – Cancer need not be seen as the last word, rather it is possible to conquer cancer with early detection, treatment, mental courage and self-confidence. This was the salient message that cancer specialists gave to patients and their family members on the occasion of World Cancer Day on February 4.

In the light of 40,000 new cases in Kerala annually, the programme, ‘Cancer Patients and their Family’, was organised by Regional Cancer Centre (RCC) here to address and discuss psychosocial, financial and physical aspects of cancer treatment.

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Press Release dated 3 February 2012

World Cancer Day: Care-givers to take centre stage
RCC organises ‘Cancer Patients and their Family’ programme on February 4

Thiruvananthapuram, Feb 3 – To give voice to the less-talked-about group of care-givers in the whole spectrum of cancer care, the internationally recognised Regional Cancer Centre (RCC) here is conducting a programme called ‘Cancer Patients and their Family’ at 9.30 a.m., at RCC Conference Hall on February 4, the World Cancer Day.

“Cancer requires protracted care and management, necessitating commitment from not just patients and physicians, but also care-givers. The programme will address the psychosocial, financial and physical aspects of cancer treatment,” said Director of RCC Dr.Paul Sebastian, who will also deliver the inaugural address.

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Press Release dated 21 December 2011

Kerala yet again Comes Hard on Tobacco

Thiruvananthapuram, Dec 21: To give further fillip to the Kerala Government’s proactive measures to control the use of tobacco products, the Regional Cancer Centre here has taken the leadership to bring together like-minded organisations for a campaign called ‘Tobacco Free Kerala’.

The Hon’ble Minister for Health Shri.Adoor Prakash today formally launched the campaign at a function at Kesari Journalists Hall here in the presence of Shri. Rajeev Sadanandan, Principal Secretary (Health), and Dr. Paul Sebastian, Director, Regional Cancer Centre (RCC).

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