Bhubaneswar: Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik made an interesting appeal in the context of rising spread of Corona. He said, “My personal appeal to you is – This is an opportunity for Odias to stop spitting Paan.”
This, I think, is the first of its kind in terms of advisory coming from the level of Chief Minister who prescribes people of Odisha not to spit pan. It is in tune with Mahatma Gandhi’s prescription that promiscuous spitting would spread disease and so he said that even spitting in a forest should be punishable by imposition of fines. In 1946 on 14th July he said ” Promiscuous spitting is a bad habit….. It is all part and parcel of the incredible ignorance that exists in our land among all classes of people in regard to the elementary laws of sanitation and hygiene. It is a habit which we must give up, if we would avoid certain diseases”.
Again in the same year he wrote “Anyone who fouls the air by spitting about carelessly, throwing refuse and rubbish or otherwise dirtying the ground, sins against man and nature”.
The personal appeal of CM to Odias to eschew spitting of pan by taking the opportunity to prevent spread of Corona assumes critical significance to promote public hygiene and sanitation. It is also worthwhile to note that Chief Minister’s appeal and advice is in tune with advisory of World Health Organisation which cautioned that corona virus can spread through saliva.
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