BSS, Rangpur :
Speakers at an advocacy meeting here have underscored the essence for turning the public transports free from smoking through united efforts of all concerned, including transport sectors leaders and workers.
Rangpur District Motor Owners Association (RDMOA) and Association for Community Development (ACD) jointly organised the advocacy meeting at the conference room of RDMOA here on Monday afternoon.
Assistant General Secretary of RDMOA AKM Azizul Islam Razu presided over the meeting participated by over 100 members of the district transport owners’ organisation.
Office Secretary of RDMOA Akhlak Hossain Mukut and its Publicity Secretary Monwarul Islam addressed the meeting and expressed their committed for making public transports smoking-free.
Focal Person of Rangpur Tobacco Control Coalition Shushanto Bhowmick addressed the meeting narrating progress achieved by different organisations in the other sectors to make public places smoking-free through joint efforts of the concerned stakeholders.
Project Coordinator of ACD Ehsanul Amin Emon delivered keynote presentation narrating consequences of smoking, indirect smoking, smoking in public transports and other places like educational institutions, offices, hospitals, clinics, hotels, restaurants.
He said every sixth adult death is being caused by tobacco in Bangladesh where 43 percent population, including 58 percent adult males, 29 percent adult females and 13 percent adolescents are consuming cigarettes, bidi, smokeless or other tobacco products.
More than 57,000 people are dying annually consuming tobacco products alone in the country and 1.2 million suffering from lung cancer, cerebra- vascular, coronary artery, chronic obstructive pulmonary and other tobacco-attributable diseases, he said.
Besides, the nation spends Taka 51 billion annually in treating patients suffering from tobacco-related diseases in one of the largest tobacco consuming country of Bangladesh where 46 million adult people are using tobacco in various forms.
