Tobacco chewing commuters on Lucknow Metro's radar

In the City of Nawabs, security officials deployed at the Lucknow Metro stations are on a task to sniff out tobacco from commuters and have weeded out over 20 kg tobacco products in the first two days of its launch.

Metro passengers in the city have been trying various tricks to smuggle tobacco and related products inside coaches.

"The passengers, who are in the habit of carrying tobacco products, are not ready to give up and try to smuggle it pan masala and other products in their pockets, socks and belts," a security personnel deployed at the Charbagh Metro Station said.

In the first two days of its launch, Lucknow Metro Rail Corporation (LMRC) security collected over 20 kgs of tobacco and related products.

"During frisking while entering Metro premises, Metro officials were able to collect approximately 20 kg tobacco and other related items like pan, pan masala, cigarette etc. from commuters," LMRC MD Kumar Keshav said.

The confiscated items will be handed over to the municipal corporation for disposal.

"I am very thankful to commuters for their cooperation in frisking and keeping the metro clean. Lucknow Metro is a green and environment friendly public transport and it is our duty to keep it clean. The efforts of LMRC and public will definitely help in keeping metro a clean public transport," the MD said.

Of the total eight stations, six kgs of tobacco products were seized from Charbagh followed by Transport Nagar, where four kg of tobacco products were seized.

Source: Times of India

Read more ...

Ensure zero tolerance towards tobacco use, engineering colleges told

Engineering colleges across the nation have been asked to show zero tolerance towards consumption of drugs, smoking and using tobacco related products.The All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) has given strict instructions to colleges to be zero tolerant towards such activities. In a circular issued recently, colleges have been asked to organise campaigns by using NCC, NSS and other voluntary groups.

AICTE has warned colleges to keep an eye on students with such habits and initiate immediate action against them. “Not just at the college campuses, we have even asked colleges to be vigilant at hostels where students from other countries reside. More than the campus, hostels are vulnerable to such activities,” said a senior official of AICTE.

In case of such incidents reported at the campus, then the colleges must submit report to the AICTE along with details of students indulged in such activities. “Considering the seriousness of the case, the colleges can also file a police complaint. It is not just to punish those who indulges in such things, it is also important to know the source of the drugs,” said an AICTE official.

A few days after the circular was issued, a drug abuse case was cracked in Karnataka. Udupi district police have detained six students of Manipal Institute of Technology  at Udupi. Police have conducted medical examination of the students and filed a case. AICTE has also sought a report from the institute.

‘No room for junk food too’

AICTE has also asked engineering colleges to create awareness about junk food. “We cannot ignore the ill effects of junk food on our health. It causes obesity. So, we have asked institutes to regulate the food available in canteens,” an AICTE official said.

Source: New Indian Express

Read more ...

Youth more likely to discourage than promote smoking among peers

Young people more often discourage smoking among their peers than encourage it, new University of Otago research suggests.

Around half of 14-and 15-year old New Zealanders have carried out at least one behaviour during the past year to discourage smoking, most often by telling their peers that smoking is bad for their health; to stop smoking; that they do not like smoking; and that smoking is a waste of money.

By contrast, fewer than one in ten 14-and 15-year olds did something to encourage smoking among their peers, most typically by giving them a cigarette or offering to share a cigarette. The findings come from a new Otago study published in the Australian and New Zealand Journal of Public Health.

The Study used survey findings from the 2014 Youth Insights survey of 2919 Year 10 students from 142 high schools throughout New Zealand.

The study's lead researcher, Dr Louise Marsh, says the Tobacco industry often uses the argument that smoking among young people is due to peer pressure.

"Our findings suggest that there is considerable promotion of non-smoking in the opposite direction.

"This was the case even among young people who reported smoking. It was also encouraging that Māori and Pacific young people were more likely to discourage smoking than young people from other ethnicities," Dr Marsh says.

Those students who discouraged smoking were also more likely to report exposure to anti-smoking messages from a range of sources including classes at school, smokefree events and smokefree adverts. This is positive in that it indicates the spreading of smokefree messages throughout the community might influence young peoples' desire to be "agents of change", and to spread their own smokefree messages.

US research based on the Truth campaign has shown the effectiveness of "peer-to-peer" influence in reducing tobacco smoking among young people. In New Zealand, the Health Promotion Agency's Stop Before You Start campaign has helped shape social norms around non-smoking."

Our findings demonstrate that a lot of informal youth-to-youth health education is already happening in NZ. This could be extended to engage young people as active ambassadors of Smokefree 2025," she says.

Source: MedicalExpress

More information: Louise Marsh et al. New Zealand adolescents' discouragement of smoking among their peers, Australian and New Zealand Journal of Public Health (2017). DOI: 10.1111/1753-6405.12698 

Read more ...