Schools to have anti-tobacco curriculum

An anti-tobacco curriculum to reduce the growing dependence of students on nicotine products will be circulated in schools.
comprehensive anti-tobacco curriculum and teachers' guide, to reduce the growing dependence of students on nicotine products, will be circulated in schools affiliated with the CBSE, ICSE and state boards.

The teachers' manual, developed by the Ministry of Health and Welfare, is a compilation of worksheets for children on issues related to tobacco consumption, such as, how it impacts the physical and psychological health of users, how it kills, the laws that govern tobacco use in India, the agenda behind pictorial warnings on tobacco packs, the adverse effects of smokeless tobacco, and the best ways to quit. It also has chapters for parents who affect their children's health by smoking in their presence. The manual will be included in the School Health Programme currently underway in 27 states.

The manual suggests that those instructing the students on these issues should be non-tobacco users. When asked how they would ensure this, a ministry official said, "We expect schools to respect the contents of the manual, considering we have a similar objective of reversing the alarming trend of increasing tobacco use among students." The recent Global Tobacco Youth Survey for India reveals a rise in the number of tobacco-addicted students from 13.7% in 2006 to 14.7% in 2010. The addiction has been reported for all forms of tobacco, like cigarettes, bidis, gutka, etc. The percentage of students who started smoking before the age of 10 has increased from 26% in 2006 to 45.4% in 2010. The percentage of boys exposed to passive smoking is 29.3% while that of girls is 22.4%. However, Usha Ram, principal of Lakshman Public School in New Delhi, believes that it is not essential to have a different curriculum to discourage the use of tobacco products: "Students imitate whatever they see on TV or at home. With proper guidance it is possible to stop them from smoking and chewing tobacco. But a separate curriculum for anti-tobacco measures is not essential. Instead it should be woven into the existing syllabus." But Jyoti Bose, principal of Springdales School sounded positive: "Of course we do not need a separate curriculum, but maybe they are doing it for the vulnerable age group to ensure that children do not indulge in such activities in the future."

20 February 2011 — The Sunday Guardian.