Thousand students express solidarity towards demand for increasing tobacco tax

As part of month long tobacco tax campaign program,  Dhaka Residential Model College  and  Dhaka Ahsania Mission  jointly organized an event,” Student’s Solidarity towards demand for increasing tobacco tax” in front of Dhaka Residential Model College, Mohammadpur, Dhaka (Opposite of Prime Minister’s Official House- Gano Bhavon) on 17 May 2017. Teachers and thousand students of Residential Model College, Leo Club members, media personalities and different NGO representatives participated in this event and expressed their solidarity towards demand for increasing tobacco tax through raising their hands. During the event, they also held different festoons and placards containing demand for increasing tobacco tax. For increasing tobacco tax, the participants placed some specific demands including Cutting-off cigarette’s price slabs based tax system and increase excise tax as a share of retail price to about 70% of the retail price on average, Cutting-off tariff value of Bidi and increase excise tax about 50% of the retail price on average,  Increase the specific excise tax about 50% in gul, jarda ( smokeless tobacco), Increase health development surcharge from 1% to 2% and formulation of an effective tax policy immediately instead of existing tobacco tax structure. Among others, Principal of Residential Model College Brigadier Gen Md Abdul Mannan Bhuyan SUP, four Vice Principal-Ms Nishad Hasan (Morning Shift Senior Wing), MD Nurun Nabi (Morning Shift Junior Wing), Manjurul Huq (Day Shift Senior Wing) , Asma Begum (Day Shift Junior Wing), Game Teacher  Sultan Uddin Ahmed and Head, Health Sector of DAM Iqbal Masud were  present in the program.