Ministry Identifies Crops to Lure Away Growers From Tobacco

Source from:  in.news.yahoo.com Aug 27 08/27/2008

As a strong tobacco lobby is trying hard to keep pictorial warnings on their products at bay, the Union Health Ministry along with the Central Tobacco Research Institute (CTRI) and the Union Agriculture Ministry has short-listed a few crops that can be viable alternatives for tobacco growers. The Health Ministry has been trying to introduce pictorial warnings for more than a year now. The tobacco lobby so far has refused to relent, saying it would affect their business and would make them jobless. Now, the ministry has identified soyabean, gram crop, turmeric and chilli as alternative crops that could be as profitable as growing tobacco. They can also be grown on the same soil. "The framework convention of tobacco control says to work on strategies to reduce its supply is to control illicit trade and provide alternative employment. The research and various studies done by the CTRI have proved that these crops are as advantageous as tobacco," said a senior official in the ministry. The ministry, however, believes that the transformation would take time, as it is not easy to change the mindset of the people involved in the trade. "Those involved in growing tobacco believe there will be a negative pattern financially if they start growing other crops," added the official. According to official data, 1,50,000 tonnes of tobacco and 30,000 tonnes of tendu leaves are used in the manufacture of bidis. The Food and Agriculture Ministry estimates that there are 2.9 lakh tobacco growers in India, engaging about 44 lakh bidi workers in the fields, in the year 1997. "Tobacco in all its forms is harmful and particularly a big contributor to non-communicable diseases. Anti-tobacco advocacy is the major task of the ministry and that's why we have flagged off the issue and have identified alternative crops," the official said. According to estimates, 85 per cent of the world's bidi tobacco is grown in India, occupying about 35 per cent of the total area under tobacco cultivation, and concentrated mostly in Gujarat, Karnataka and Maharashtra. The Health Ministry says that cheap labour and better workmanship make West Bengal, Bihar, Orissa, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka the major centres of bidi rolling. "The state governments will have to be informed about the new research, as the ministry's aim is to reduce tobacco usage which will go down only if the production goes down," the official said. Enditem