A seminar organized by Pakistan National Heart Association on the topic 'Harms of Tobacco Products and Importance of Tax Policy' was held in Islamabad.  

Speaking on the occasion, the participants said that use of tobacco products is a major cause of dangerous diseases with an estimated 163,360 people dying from tobacco use in 2017.

They proposed that the government should increase the tax on tobacco products by at least 30 percent in the upcoming budget to discourage its use.

The Social Policy and Development Center published a fact sheet on the health and economic harm of tobacco use. According to the report, 31 million adults over the age of 15 use tobacco.

Participants, include former Governor Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and PML-N leader Iqbal Zafar Jhagra, MQM-Pakistan leader Kishwar Zehra, PML-N lawmakers Dr. Samina Matloob and Zahra Wadood Fatemi, JUI-F MNA Syed Mehmood Shah, and PTI leader Uzma Riaz.