What happened: Muhammad Iqbal Memon Karachi’s Commissioner has vowed to make Karachi a smoke-free city by establishing Tobacco Control Desk. The Tobacco control desk will be made at the Commissioner’s office while the DIMC (District Implementation and Monitoring Committees) supervise it.
Details: Iqbal Memon was speaking as the chief guest at the Smoke-Free rally in Karachi. Whereas, he has also hinted at taking steps to curb the smoke generated from vehicles. Subsequently, the Commissioner is quoted by a publication saying, “Money spent on tobacco reduces households’ spending on food, health, education, housing, and household durables.” Why it matters: According to an organizations’ survey, more than 163,000 people die in Pakistan due to tobacco-related diseases. At the same time, 31,000 people die due to passive smoking. In comparison, 298 deaths are reported daily due to tobacco in Pakistan. Another data revealed that more than 177 million cigarettes are consumed per day in Pakistan. Out of the 163,000 deaths reported in Pakistan, 16.0% of them are male, while 4.9% are females, an overall 10.9% of deaths are caused by smoking in Pakistan yearly.