Plans are afoot to propose a curb on smoking at the entrance and the vicinity of the malls, hotels, buildings of major organisations and other important popular destinations in the country, disclosed a top official of the Ministry of Public Health (MOPH).
“This is a recommendation from us.We hope to implement it at leading facilities in the country,” said Dr. Kholood al- Mutawaa, head, Non- Communicable Disease Department at MOPH and the regional officer for Tobacco Cessation yesterday while interacting with Gulf Times on the sidelines of a workshop 'National Training for Media and Communication on Tobacco Control' held at Sharq Village & Spa.
“This is not a new proposal.We had initiated this idea last year itself.We had contacted with the officials of the malls and other organisations. We also had a talk with Qatar Tourism Authority in this regard,” pointed out Dr. al-Mutawaa.
The official continued,“It is not just a health issue alone. It is not a suitable practice and definitely not environment friendly. If any VIPs visit these places, they might see people engaged in smoking in the vicinity of these places which might give a bad image.”
She highlighted that some of the malls have already complied with the proposal and the ministry had already recognised them with certificates of appreciation.
Dr. al-Mutawaa noted that recently the Ministry has started discussions on this subject again. She told, “Now we are proposing a specific distance from the building for smoking. This is what we discussed last week .We also have had a discussion with the officials of various establishments. We are planning to send a letter in this regard to these facilities.”
She observed “For some of the malls and other big establishments, a small distance such as 20 metres is not a suitable idea. It has to be more distant. We are looking to have a distance excluding the parking areas. This is what we are working out. Once it is signed by the officials of the Ministry, it will be sent to all the malls.”
The official stated that a common complaint about some facilities is that people line up near the entrance and smoke which is quite disturbing for other people. “As soon as people want to smoke, they come out of the place and stand at the entrances and smoke. This has to be avoided as it disturbs other visitors to this place,” she added.
The official also revealed that there are plans to conduct a study on the impacts of second hand smoke and the whole process might start soon.