World No Tobacco Day today

The purpose of the day is to encourage countries and governments to work towards strict regulations on tobacco products by raising awareness about the existence of wide variety of deadly tobacco products.

The day insists regulations to help people get accurate information, remove the disguise and unveil the truth behind tobacco products.

World Health Organisation's official website says: "Tobacco is the second major cause of death in the world. It is currently responsible for the death of one in ten adults worldwide (about 5 million deaths each year)."

"If current smoking patterns continue, it will cause some 10 million deaths each year by 2020. Half the people that smoke today -- that is about 650 million people -- will eventually be killed by tobacco."

Bangladesh, being a member state of World Health Organisation, enacted an anti-smoking law named, "Smoking and Tobacco Usage (control) Act, 2005" on March 13, 2005, which prohibits publication of advertisements of tobacco products in newspapers, books, magazines, radio and television broadcasts, as well as in cinema.

The new law also bans smoking in public places and transports with a provision for penalty.

But the law did very little in changing the habit of the smokers as cigarette companies keep on inventing new types of propaganda favouring smoking.