The Indian Dental Association (IDA) on Thursday launched the ‘National Oral Cancer Awareness Campaign’ to spread awareness about the ill-effects of consumption of tobacco.
The month-long awareness campaign, which will end on February 4, will cover 34 districts in Maharashtra. Students from the Mahatma Gandhi Mission Dental College and Kirti M. Doongursee College of Arts, Science and Commerce will stage street plays at railway stations, Gateway of India, Marine Drive, religious institutions and beaches. The students will also carry banners saying, ‘I am a student and I will help prevent Oral cancer’ and ‘I am an IDA Dentist and I will help prevent Oral cancer’.
The launch of the campaign, held at the D.R. APJ Abdul Kalam Education and Research Centre in Prabhadevi, was attended by Sadhana Tayade, head of National Tobacco Control Programme, and Vinay Bhide, chief financial officer of Ador Welding, along with IDA officials and members.
“It is important for the youth to spread awareness on the hazards of consuming tobacco as the future rests on their shoulders. The government and private practitioners also need to join in,” Ms. Tayade said.
There are around 75,000 volunteers working on this campaign and other IDA activities in the country, said Dr. Ashok Dhoble, honorary secretary of IDA. “ We will continue to conduct check-ups and screening activities to fulfill our social obligation to prevent oral cancer,” he said.
The launch function also included a street play directed by Dr. Visalakshi Shivaraman, the dental head of the National Oral Health Programme, and performed by students in front of the Siddhi Vinayak temple in Prabhadevi. It demonstrated how smokeless tobacco and alcohol are carcinogenic agents and the effects of passive smoking. It also touched upon on how celebrities and social media influencers drive tobacco consumption up by endorsing such products. T-shirts saying, ‘I am and I will’ were distributed to the students of participating colleges.
“We aim to reduce tobacco consumption in the country to below 25%. To ensure this, we have appointed consultants in schools, mainly in the rural areas of the State. Campaigns and free treatments have also been organised,” Ms. Tayade said.
