Pramesh S Jain & Yogesh K Porwar
C
ity Receives $150,000 Award to Further Noncommunicable Disease and Injury Prevention Work
Tushar Giri Nath,BBMP Chief Commissioner announced today that Bengaluru is the proud recipient of a 2023 Partnership for Healthy Cities Award for its efforts to reduce public place smoking and thereby significantly reducing the NCD burden in the city.
The Partnership,a prestigious global network of 70 cities committed to saving lives by preventing noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) and injuries, bestowed the award to the Bengaluru delegation at the Partnership for Healthy Cities Summit held in London on March 15, 2023.
The Partnership for Healthy Cities Summit brought together mayors and officials from more than 50 cities around the world to discuss urgent public health concerns and best practices that save lives and create healthier cities.
On receiving the award at London,Dr Thrilok Chandra KV,IAS Special Commissioner (Health), said “I am honoured to receive this award on behalf of Bengaluru for our commitment to enforce smoke-free laws and protect non-smokers from the harms of second-hand smoke.
I am incredibly proud of our city for winning this Partnership for healthy city award. .
This is a testament to the hard work and dedication of our BBMP health team,civil society organizations and residents who have all worked together to create a healthier city for everyone.
The focused effort from the Smoke-free Bengaluru resulted in a reduction of public place smoking within the premises by 5.2% (18.18% in 2017 reduced to 13.30% in 2021) and a 51.9% increase in the display of No Smoking Signage (from 23.1% in 2017 to 75% 2021).
We will continue to prioritize health and wellness initiatives to ensure that our city remains a leader in promoting a healthy lifestyle and improving the overall well-being of our community.”
“Noncommunicable diseases and injuries pose the number-one threat to global public health.
Mayors worldwide are increasingly uniting to confront it, and the Partnership for Healthy Cities will continue to support their urgent and lifesaving work,”said Michael R. Bloomberg,founder of Bloomberg LP and Bloomberg Philanthropies,108th mayor of New York City,and WHO Global Ambassador for Noncommunicable Diseases and Injuries.
Our network’s first-ever Summit showcased the best of local public health leadership,and given the gains achieved by our inaugural award winners,we expect even more leaders will follow in their footsteps as they create healthier, more vibrant cities.”
Dr Thriveni B S,Project Director,who is leading the Partnership for Healthy Cities work under Vital Strategies, said “it’s a proud moment to receive this award and it gives me immense joy and satisfaction that the partnership started in collaboration with BBMP in 2017 has been very successful.
We have witnessed a commitment and support from the BBMP to make Bengaluru a Smoke-free city by strictly implementing tobacco control laws.
This award motivates us to do more and work towards bringing in new tobacco control rules and regulations to prevent youth from getting addicted to tobacco”.
Dr Bala Sundar A S,Chief Health Officer,BBMP said I’m happy that Bengaluru received this Award and we are committed to continuing its efforts to promote a smoke-free environment.
This award is a great honour and reinforces Bengaluru’s position as a leader in enforcing tobacco control laws”.
Dr Vishal Rao,Mr Amit Karnik and Mr Mallikarjuna also represented the Bengaluru city along with BBMP special commissioner,CHO and Vital Strategies Project Director.
With the majority of the global population now living in urban settings, ensuring the health and well-being of residents in our world’s urban centers is crucial.
NCDs–including heart disease,stroke,cancer,diabetes, and chronic respiratory diseases–and injuries are responsible for over 80% of all deaths globally.
Cities are uniquely positioned to transform the fight against NCDs and injuries by implementing policies to significantly reduce exposure to risk factors.The Summit worked to highlight best practices and proven interventions.
The Partnership for Healthy Cities,which is supported by Bloomberg Philanthropies in partnership with the World Health Organization and global health organization Vital Strategies,enables cities to protect over 305 million people across the globe from preventable deaths and injuries,using proven interventions. Each city in the Partnership has pledged to enact one of 14 health goals identified by WHO as effective in reducing NCDs and road traffic injuries.
The inaugural Partnership for Healthy Cities Summit is hosted by Bloomberg Philanthropies, the World Health Organization, global health organization Vital Strategies and Mayor Sadiq Khan of London. A recording of the award ceremony is available here.
About – Smoke-Free Bengaluru
Bengaluru which is also part of this Partnership of Global Network of 70+ cities committed to reducing noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) and injuries launched a campaign called ‘Smoke-Free Bengaluru’ which has been working to strengthen the implementation of smoke-free laws with a special focus on secondhand smoke.
This campaign aims of helping protect non-smokers from the harmful effects of passive smoking, which include increased risks for NCDs such as cancer and heart disease was launched in October 2017, by then Minister for Bengaluru Development.
Smoke-Free Bengaluru activities include awareness campaigns, billboards and online media campaigns about the risks of secondhand smoke and support for repeated enforcement drives.
The result has been a marked increase in compliance with the law and a reduction in public place smoking within the premises by 5.2% (18.18% in 2017 reduced to 13.30% in 2021) and a 51.9% increase in the display of No Smoking Signage (from 23.1% in 2017 to 75% 2021).
About the Partnership for Healthy Cities:
The Partnership for Healthy Cities is a prestigious global network of cities committed to saving lives by preventing NCDs and injuries.
Supported by Bloomberg Philanthropies in partnership with WHO, as well as Vital Strategies, this initiative enables cities around the world to deliver a high-impact policy or programmatic intervention to reduce NCDs and injuries in their communities.
