Mysuru: Antardhwani, HCG’s independent think tank, has launched the country’s first-of-its-kind alternative farming project in Mysuru District’s Hunsur region, the state’s tobacco-growing hub. The project involves 50 tobacco farmers, who are primarily growing sandalwood besides other seasonal fruits on 1 acre of their respective agricultural land, putting the project size to a total of 50 acres in the first phase.
More than 15,000 high-grade saplings of sandalwood and over 8,000 saplings of lucrative seasonal fruits have already been supplied to the farmers free of cost. They are joining forces with agronomists, ecologists, medical practitioners and other relevant experts to guide decision-making at every step of the process.
Tobacco growers in the State have been unable to do so in the absence of an economically viable alternative plan. There has long been the need to identify crops which can be grown instead of tobacco in regions with different climatic and soil conditions, assure a market guarantee of the produce, and at the same time sensitise the farmers about the ill effects of growing tobacco on health and environment (deforestation) – a fact which they are largely unaware of. The project involves growers of FCV (Flue-Cured Virginia) tobacco used for cigarettes is highly remunerative has an international market and institutional support, and is backed by the tobacco industry.
More than 1.3 million people die of tobacco use every year in India and a majority of them are afflicted with Cancer. The country, which is the second-largest consumer of tobacco in the world, accounts for almost half of all oral cancers and the highest burden of tuberculosis globally.
The 2022 Tobacco Atlas released last week says there are 1.1 billion cigarette smokers in the world currently and an additional 200 million who use other tobacco products. Not surprisingly, smoking will kill 8 million people each year globally by 2030. Yet, tobacco remains to be the single most widely available addictive substance and can be easily purchased anywhere. India is also the third-largest producer of tobacco in the world, with Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat and UP account for almost 80 per cent of the total production.
In this direction, phased reduction in tobacco farming and helping farmers shift to a safer and economically viable alternative crop can prove to be a game-changer in the prevention and control of tobacco use.
