PATNA: BJP leader Shatrughan Sinha today praised the Nitish Kumar government's decision of total prohibition in Bihar and urged the Chief Minister to give a serious thought on curbing tobacco consumption.
"Total prohibition is a progressive decision by the Nitish Kumar government to which everybody should extend a wholehearted support," Sinha told PTI.
The BJP Lok Sabha member from Patna Sahib made a strong case for similar concerted action against tobacco and its products like khaini, ghutka, zarda and beedi.
"We must kill tobacco before it kills us," said Sinha, who had launched a strong campaign against smoking and tobacco consumption as a Union Health Minister.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) has marked tobacco as a leading killer. In India, tobacco related diseases like cancer and lung problems have been identified posing a grave threat.
Prohibition of tobacco along with the total ban on liquor would have a "cascading" effect on human health, he said.
Last Tuesday, the Nitish Kumar government had announced a complete ban on liquor, domestic and spicy, as well as Indian Made Foreign Liquor (IMFL) in Bihar.