PM Modi nominates Shreya Ghoshal, R Madhavan to fight obesity
What's the story
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has roped in several big names in his fight against obesity.
On Monday, he nominated actors Mohanlal and R Madhavan, singer Shreya Ghoshal, and Bhojpuri actor-singer Dinesh Lal Yadav (aka Nirahua) from the film industry.
In a social media post, he tagged these celebrities and others from fields like politics, sports, and business.
Campaign expansion
'Our movement gets bigger': PM's message to nominees
In his social media post, PM Modi wrote, "As mentioned in yesterday's #MannKiBaat, I would like to nominate the following people to help strengthen the fight against obesity and spread awareness on reducing edible oil consumption in food."
He also requested each nominee to further "nominate 10 people each so that our movement gets bigger!" This strategy is aimed at expanding the reach of his health campaign.
Health chain
PM Modi's call for reduced oil consumption
During his weekend broadcast Mann Ki Baat, the Prime Minister urged Indians to consciously reduce their cooking oil usage by at least 10%.
He asked the people to pass on this advice to 10 more people, creating a nationwide health chain.
Sharing data, PM Modi said one in eight Indians is obese and expressed concern over the doubling of obesity cases in recent years.
Dietary changes
'Small changes in eating habits can make future stronger'
PM Modi stressed on dietary changes to fight obesity.
He said, "Obesity cases have doubled in the past few years, but what is even more worrying is that the problem of obesity among children has also increased four-fold."
"Therefore, you should decide that you will use 10% less oil every month... By making small changes in our eating habits, we can make our future stronger, fitter, and disease-free."
Twitter Post
Check out PM's address here
As mentioned in yesterday’s #MannKiBaat, I would like to nominate the following people to help strengthen the fight against obesity and spread awareness on reducing edible oil consumption in food. I also request them to nominate 10 people each so that our movement gets bigger!… pic.twitter.com/bpzmgnXsp4
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) February 24, 2025
Global issue
Obesity: A global health concern highlighted by PM Modi
In his Mann Ki Baat address, the Prime Minister also highlighted the World Health Organization data which revealed that 250 crore people across the globe were overweight in 2022.
He stressed that tackling obesity is not an individual choice but a responsibility toward one's family.
Obesity, which can be defined as excessive accumulation of body fat, raises the risk of chronic diseases such as diabetes and heart disease.