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Repeated dithering by UPA government in introducing pictorial signs and health warnings on cigarette packets invited a stinging query from the Supreme Court on Monday, “Is the government doing this to control rapidly increasing population?”

Appearing for NGO ‘Health for Millions’, senior advocate Indira Jaising told a bench comprising justices B N Agrawal and G S Singhvi that the government had succumbed to the pressure exerted by the tobacco lobby and repeatedly postponed implementation of its decision on pictorial warnings.

She asked how the government, which has ministers who own tobacco plantations, could take a decision that was contrary to their interests?

However, additional solicitor general Gopal Subramaniam said the government had taken a decision to introduce pictorial signs and health warnings on tobacco packs from May 31, 2009 and the health ministry was coordinating with other ministries for the same. TNN


Source: Times of India

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Gangtok, Oct 6 (PTI) About 400 participants from across the country will deliberate on ‘Substance abuse and suicide’ at the three–day national conference of the Indian Psychiatric Society (IPS) from October nine.

Hosted by Sikkim Manipal Institute of Medical Sciences (SMIMS) at Tadong, the delegates will dwell on various aspects of (drug) substance abuse and suicide from socio–economic and medical point of views, Sikkim Manipal University (SMU) Vice–Chancellor Brigadier (Rtd) SS Pabla said today.

The experts opinion on the twin vices will be relevant for Sikkim in particular, since the state has been dogged by the growth in the number of suicide cases over the years and its youths taking to abuse of banned substances.

Pabla said representative of government hospitals, Primary Health Centres (PHCs), NGOs, have been invited to attend the conference to update themselves about various initiatives at the social–medical level against suicide and drug addiction.


Source: www.ptinews.com