<p>Prime Minister Manmohan Singh Wednesday said India is committed to a tobacco free society and emphasised on providing alternative livelihoods to those engaged in tobacco farming or manufacture.<br /><br /></p>.<p>The prime minister said India recently banned the sale of gutkha, a widely consumed form of chewing tobacco.<br /><br />"India is firmly committed to the vision of a tobacco free society," the prime minister said in a recorded message at the International Conference on Public Health Priorities in the 21st Century here.<br /><br />"As we act with conviction and commitment to eliminate tobacco as a threat to human health, we must also assist those engaged in tobacco farming or manufacture, to move towards economically viable alternative livelihoods," he said.<br /><br />Participants from various countries would take part in two-day deliberations to discuss ways for tobacco control.<br /><br />India is the second largest consumer of tobacco products in the world and the third largest producer of tobacco.<br /><br />Nearly 275 million people use tobacco in India. Nearly 48 percent men and 20 percent women use some form of tobacco.</p>
<p>Prime Minister Manmohan Singh Wednesday said India is committed to a tobacco free society and emphasised on providing alternative livelihoods to those engaged in tobacco farming or manufacture.<br /><br /></p>.<p>The prime minister said India recently banned the sale of gutkha, a widely consumed form of chewing tobacco.<br /><br />"India is firmly committed to the vision of a tobacco free society," the prime minister said in a recorded message at the International Conference on Public Health Priorities in the 21st Century here.<br /><br />"As we act with conviction and commitment to eliminate tobacco as a threat to human health, we must also assist those engaged in tobacco farming or manufacture, to move towards economically viable alternative livelihoods," he said.<br /><br />Participants from various countries would take part in two-day deliberations to discuss ways for tobacco control.<br /><br />India is the second largest consumer of tobacco products in the world and the third largest producer of tobacco.<br /><br />Nearly 275 million people use tobacco in India. Nearly 48 percent men and 20 percent women use some form of tobacco.</p>