2024-03-13 01:32:16
For the health protection of women, children and youth, the anti-tobacco organizations including Dhaka Ahsaniya Mission have demanded a higher tax rate on tobacco products in the budget of the next fiscal year 2023-24.
The organizations made this demand from a human chain program organized in front of the head office of the Dhaka Ahsania Mission in Dhanmondi on Tuesday (March 14) morning.
Mentioning the health risks of second-hand smoke, the speakers said that second-hand smoke during pregnancy increases the chances of the child dying within 24 hours of birth or giving birth to a stillborn child. Even, the mother’s breast milk also decreases.
Speakers in the program said that not only the health protection of women, but by imposing a higher tax rate on tobacco products, about 1 million young people can be prevented from using tobacco and about 5 lakh young people can be saved from premature death. Also, additional revenue of about 10 thousand crore rupees can be collected through enforcement.
Citing the World Health Organization, the speakers said that among the 1 billion people who smoke in the world, 200 million are women and every year about 220 million women die due to tobacco consumption. More than 71 percent of these women live in middle- and low-income countries like Bangladesh. The risk of tobacco-related illness and death is also high in these areas.
Smoking rates among women are increasing in many countries around the world. Also, 80 percent of the people displaced due to environmental damage caused by tobacco and climate change are women.
8 million people die every year due to tobacco consumption in the world, 1 lakh 61 thousand in Bangladesh alone. Out of this, 1.2 million people are victims of passive smoking or indirect smoking. In addition, second-hand smoke increases the risk of heart disease by 85%. Even women are 25 percent more likely to develop cancer and heart disease than men.
Dhaka Ahsania Mission Executive Director Sajedul Qayyum Dulal, Health Sector Director Iqbal Masood, Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids Lead Policy Advisor Mostafizur Rahman and others were present in the program.