ISLAMABAD, Dec 8: The activists of a non-governmental organization criticized the government for adopting a half- hearted approach towards implementing existing laws banning smoking in public places.

They urged the government to sign and ratify the UN Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC), facilitating complete prohibition of smoking in the country that also included banning its promotion, advertising as well as initiating projects to provide alternative source of income to tobacco growing farmers.

The NGO organized a consultative session here on Monday which was participated by different stakeholders from across the country besides representatives of the World Health Organization (WHO), health ministry officials and media practitioners.

The participants of the session expressed concern over lack of interest on part of the government to implement anti-smoking laws in the country. This, they said, was increasing the number of tobacco-related deaths in the country.

The WHO representative, Dr Faizullah Kakar, said Pakistan should join 78 other countries of the world in signing the FCTC and help address tobacco issues.

He said the FCTC was the first ever health treaty and was passed unanimously by the participant countries of the 56th health assembly in Geneva in April earlier this year.

Dr Ehsan Latif, an activist of the NGO, claimed that the number of smokers above 15 years of age had now reached 28 million in the country which spent Rs12.3billion on this habit.

As against it, he said, the cost of treatment of tobacco- related diseases was much higher which ultimately burdened the already fragile health infrastructure unnecessarily.

Dr Farrukh Qureshi, an activist of the Tobacco Initiative Pakistan (ITP), said the current law on smoking was an important development in Pakistan for tobacco control, but added that the ‘ordinance’ needed to be implemented in letter and spirit to achieve meaningful results.