An editorial has been published on the Daily Dhaka Tribune on Nov 17, 2004 as a follow up of another report on tobacco farming with lucrative offers from the tobacco companies by an ATMA member- Abu Bakar Siddique on Nov 15, 2014.
The editorial reads that farmers prefer tobacco farming instead of seasonal crops (winter season is ahead) for the attractive offers provided by the tobacco companies and as a result of extended tobacco farming on croplands, the acreage of food crops are on decline, and soil infertility is on rise due to unplanned use of pesticides.
Decreasing tobacco farming in the country by increasing efforts to discourage smoking, and reducing the demand for tobacco is a potential solution for the problem, according to the editorial. Moreover, over 60, 000 people die of tobacco-related illness annually in Bangladesh and it is a key factor for heart disorders, reads it.
The editorial also recommended that the government must do more to discourage tobacco use by progressively raising taxes and by outlawing all marketing efforts directed at recruiting new, young smokers.