Anti-smoking measures stressed for better health

MULTAN, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 31st May, 2026) Speakers at a seminar marking the World No Tobacco Day urged stronger action against tobacco use, warning that smoking remains a major public health threat and causes millions of deaths worldwide each year.

Addressing an awareness seminar and walk organized by the Young Pakistanis Organization at Multan Post Graduate College, Chairman of the Department of Gender Studies at Bahauddin Zakariya University, Prof. Dr. Mureed Hussain Malik, said tobacco use claims around eight million lives annually and remains one of the most common yet underestimated forms of addiction.

Among the chief guests were former Overseas Pakistanis Commission chairman and spiritual leader Makhdoom Shoaib Akmal Hashmi, District education Officer (Literacy) Dr.

Tahira Rafiq, and Young Pakistanis Organization President Naeem Iqbal Naeem.

Speakers highlighted the rising number of smokers globally and in Pakistan, linking tobacco use to serious illnesses including lung cancer and heart disease. They stressed the need for stronger awareness campaigns, particularly among young people, who are often introduced to smoking at an early age.

The participants called on the government to enforce stricter anti-tobacco laws and intensify efforts to curb smoking and related addictions. The event concluded with an awareness walk from the college to the main road.