Sale of tobacco products in army canteens should be stopped: Harsh Vardhan

NEW DELHI: Armed forces establishments should stop selling tobacco products through their canteens and the policy providing such items at a discount to armed forces personnel should be revisited, Health Minister Harsh Vardhan has suggested.

In a letter to Defence Minister Arun Jaitley, Vardhan also suggested that all defence establishments including naval ships should be declared 'No Smoking' zones.

He wrote that the sale of alcohol and tobacco is commonplace in defence canteens. "The anti-smoking efforts have so far not focused on this particular health risk that puts thousands of armed force personnel at great risk which is entirely preventable," he wrote.

The Health Minister further said that there is no data available as to the extent of smoking in Indian Armed forces and consequently the adverse health impact on the defence personnel following tobacco use.

"To my understanding there is no policy formulated by the Armed Forces on tobacco sales and its use," he said.

Noting that tobacco epidemic is one of the biggest public health threats the world has ever faced, Vardhan said that according to the World Health Organisation (WHO), tobacco kills half of its users.

"In numbers, tobacco kills nearly 6 million people each year," he said.

He said military personnel are required to pass fitness tests, undergo periodic drug tests, and meet weight and body-composition standards or face disciplinary action, including possible discharge.

"Yet despite the underlying expectations for superlative fitness and despite the availability of state-of-the-art tobacco-cessation programs, many military personnel still use tobacco, and its use remains accepted, accommodated and promoted in the armed forces. Why?

One reason is that tobacco use for military personnel is still too frequently characterised as a right, a necessity, or a benefit. Achieving a tobacco-free military requires rethinking these perceptions and unmasking the forces perpetuating them," Vardhan wrote.