Boda (Panchgarh) Correspondent:

A sharing meeting titled "Reviewing the status of Panchagarh district in implementing the Tobacco Control Act enacted to protect public health" was held at the Boda Upazila Cultural Council hall in Panchagarh on Monday (March 2) afternoon. The meeting was organized by the local voluntary organization Palli Sahitya Sangstha in collaboration with Bangladesh Anti-Tobacco Alliance and Work for Better Bangladesh.

The sharing meeting, chaired by the organization's president Abdus Samad Tara, was addressed by Panchagarh Civil Surgeon Office Senior Health and Education Officer Zia Uddin, Executive Director of Palli Sahitya Sangstha Harun Or Rashid, Executive Director of Suchanar Shafiqul Alam Dolan, Executive Director of Drishtidan Manoranjan Sarkar, Executive Director of Desh Unnayan Sangstha Zahirul Islam, District Coordinator of Democracy Watch Nurul Islam Nahid, MK Pir Mizanur Rahman and journalist Nazrul Islam, among others.

The speakers at the meeting said that if effective steps are not taken to control tobacco use, it will spread further in Panchagarh, which will increase the health risks to people. The speakers demanded that necessary steps be taken now in a coordinated manner to control tobacco and declare Panchagarh district a tobacco-free district. Government and private officials, women representatives, social workers, dignitaries of the area, interested parties, cultural workers and journalists participated in the sharing meeting held.