Wife of former Maharashtra home minister who died of oral cancer, writes to wife of ITC chairman Y C Deveshwar asking her to join the fight against tobacco “merchants of death”
Days after ITC chairman Y C Deveshwar’s death, Sumitra Pednekar, wife of former Maharashtra labour minister Satish Pednekar, has written to his wife asking her to join the crusade against tobacco.
Asking her to join the fight against the “merchants of death, Pednekar, in her letter addressed to “Mrs Deveshwar” wrote: “I read about the sad demise of Mr Deveshwar after prolonged battle with cancer. My deepest condolences. I can feel your loss and pain because I am also a widow who lost my husband after a painful struggle with cancer. Just like your husband, my husband also used tobacco and finally succumbed to this lethal habit. While they considered it as their personal choice, their loss pushed their family into vortex of grief, loneliness and financial insecurity. They also subjected us to great amount of second hand exposure!” Satish Pednekar died of oral cancer.
Tobacco related diseases kills about 2500 Indians daily and over 10 lakh Indians every year. And it is estimated that about 5500 youth and children (as young as 8 years old), initiate tobacco use daily
Y C Deveshwari is credited with ITC’s move away from tobacco into other fields such as FMCG, Pednekar, who is associated with the NGO Voice of Tobacco Victims (VOTV), added in her letter: “Millions of women in India have been widowed and kids have been orphaned because of cigarettes of ITC. Despite the claims of diversification, vast majority of the profits of ITC still come from sale of their cigarettes. ITC has systematically challenged or resisted every effort to control tobacco. I call ITC and all tobacco companies the “Factory of Widows and Orphans”. Filled with anger and disgust, I decided to fight against this evil on my own with help other tobacco victims.”
Tobacco related diseases kills about 2500 Indians daily and over 10 lakh Indians every year. And it is estimated that about 5500 youth and children (as young as 8 years old), initiate tobacco use daily. The total direct and indirect cost of diseases attributable to tobacco use was a staggering Rupees 1.04 lakh crore ($17 billion) in 2011 or 1.16% of India’s GDP.
About her husband and his tobacco addiction, Pednekar says: “My husband’s illness happened because of his addiction to mawa, a mix of chewing tobacco and pan masala. My daughters and I are still struggling to come to terms with the scars left by his extended illness and tragic demise.”
