Tobacco Emergency is one of the most serious preventable public health hazards the world is facing, something that’s killing more than 8 million people per year, including nearly 1 million from exposure to second-hand smoke. Tobacco consumption and addiction lead to poverty by diverting household savings on tobacco rather than on basic needs such as food, shelter, and health. Over 80 percent of the 1.3bn tobacco users worldwide live in low- and middle-income countries, where the burden of tobacco-related illnesses and deaths is the heaviest. The economic costs of tobacco use are substantial and include significant healthcare costs for treating the diseases caused by tobacco use as well as the lost human capital that results from tobacco-attributable morbidity and mortality. The scale of the human and economic tragedy that tobacco imposes is shocking, but it’s also preventable. In 2007, WHO introduced a practical, cost-effective way to scale up the implementation of the main demand reduction provisions of the WHO FCTC on the ground. Called 6 MPOWER, it involves the following steps: 1. Monitor tobacco use and prevention policies

2. Protect people from tobacco use

3. Offer help to quit tobacco use 4. Warn about the dangers of tobacco 5. Enforce bans on tobacco advertising, promotion, and sponsorship 6. Raise taxes on tobacco Many countries have ratified and implemented this measure to control tobacco consumption. Continuous monitoring and evaluation of this measure are essential for determining its effectiveness. Consumption of E-Cigarette, Vape, Hookah is also a rising trend among the youths. Sadly, there are no strong policies to control it. Second major cause of death in Nepal According to the Nepal Development Research Institute's recent report titled “Health Impact of Tobacco in Nepal”, around 1.34m Nepalis will die from tobacco consumption in the next 30 years at current rates. Nepal became a Party to the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control on 5 Feb 2007. The Tobacco Product (Control and Regulation) Act, of 2010 is the primary law governing tobacco control in Nepal and regulates, among other things, smoking in public places, workplaces, and public transport; tobacco advertising, promotion, and sponsorship; and tobacco packaging and labeling. One regulation and three directives have been issued under the Act to implement its provisions: 1) The Tobacco Products (Control and Regulation) Regulation – 2068 (2011); 2) the Directive for Printing and Labeling of Warning Message and Graphics in the Boxes, Packets, Wrappers, Cartons, Parcels and Packaging of Tobacco Products; (3) Tobacco Product Control and Regulatory Directive, 2014; and (4) Directive on Printing Warning Messages and Pictures on Tobacco Product Boxes, Packets, Cartons, Parcels and Packaging Materials, 2014. The last directive listed increased the size of the graphic health warnings from 75 percent to 90 percent of the front and back of all tobacco products packaging starting from 2015. Reports suggest that enforcement of these provisions has not been comprehensive and widespread. Balen Shah, Mayor of Kathmandu Metropolitan City, and Chiribabu Maharjan, Mayor of Lalitpur Metropolitan City, have led a policy of “Banning Smoking in Public Areas” of Kathmandu and Lalitpur Metropolitan Cities recently but the consumers do not strictly follow it. Finance Minister’s solemn pledge NDRI is one of the think tanks of Nepal that is working on tobacco control by researching, analyzing, and recommending the required response strategy to deal with the Tobacco Emergency.  It initiated a campaign seeking written commitments from election candidates to work on reducing tobacco consumption in Nepal. At least 36 influential leaders of major political parties signed on the pledge. They were from the Nepali Congress, UML, CPN (Maoist Center), RSP, RPP, CPN (United Socialist), and others. Finance Minister Janardan Sharma, signing on the pledge, expressed solidarity with the campaign on Dec 15, 2022 (29 Mansir, 2079). Chief Minister of Karnali Province, Jeevan Bahadur Shahi, also expressed his solidarity. Former prime minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal and general secretary of Nepali Congress, Gagan Thapa also signed the pledge ahead of federal elections, 2022. The pledge includes the following four points: 1. Match the levels of tobacco taxation in India by 2025 2. Ban the sale of cigarettes as single sticks 3. Stop reopening of government cigarette factories 4. End tobacco sale within 100 meters of schools and hospitals The NDRI team plans to follow up on implementation of tobacco control commitments during their tenure. Box Disturbing findings Annapurna Media Network conducted a survey to examine public perceptions regarding tobacco use in Nepal. The major objectives of the study were to know what people think about tobacco use and how the government can take action to control it. The findings of the study, among other things, point that adolescents seem to be highly involved in addictive activities. Among the users surveyed, the study found that some teenagers consume tobacco to show off and influence others. It found that 95 percent of the respondents want to see the new government take the Tobacco Epidemic seriously.