In view of controlling the Covid 19 pandemic, it is highly necessary to ban tobacco chewing for at least 6 months to a year as spitting is one of the causes of infection, said anti tobacco warrior and cofounder, Salaam Jeevan, Md Imran Ali.
Ali has urged the Prime Minister and Chief Minister to take steps in this regard.
He said time to time the World Health Organization (WHO) has been giving its observations, guidelines and suggestions by which the world fraternity takes appropriate steps against Covid 19 in their respective countries and jurisdiction. In this line, the WHO (South- East Asia) has warned in its tweet that chewing smokeless tobacco (khaini, zarda, gutkha, paan masala with tobacco) and Erica nut (Supari) increases saliva production and enhances the urge to spit repeatedly. Spitting in public places could increase the spread of Covid 19, he said.
Similarly, the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) has appealed to the people not to consume and spit smokeless tobacco in public places. Even if the Government legally prohibits spitting in public places, practically checking out such public spiting will not be possible at all. Currently, the Covid 19 cases seems to be at community level that needs extra care and protection mechanism, said Ali.