Merely passing laws to prohibit smoking in the public places won't do any good to the society unless its strict implementation is not ensured by the government. This was opined by Dr Bhaben Choudhury, chief consultant of the newly started Tobacco Cessation Clinic of Sanjivani Hospital at Maligaon here. Dr Choudhury, while interacting with media persons on the hazardous impact of tobacco on health, revealed that while the western countries are strictly opt for nicotine-free cigarettes, here in India, the quantity of tobacco in one cigarette can go up to 9.72 micrograms. "Though much is being heard about the new law restricting tobacco in public place, its proper implementation would only be possible if the civil society and NGOs working in this field would exercise pressure on the government to implement the law,' he said. The tobacco cessation clinic, opened with the support of Cipla Lucenta, will offer nicotine replacement therapy to the needy people. "There are also some myths about tobacco even among the educated people which should be eradicated. Whereas some smokers think that only chewing tobacco causes cancer and not smoking, others believe that the costly gutkas are less injurious to health,' he maintained. According to him, one out of five men will die in India due to smoking habit by 2010 and overall smoking will cause one million deaths in India by 2010. As per a study conducted by New England Journal of Medicine, smoking already accounts for 900,000 deaths a year in India. The study warns that without action, the death toll from smoking will climb further. It also predicts smoking could soon account for 20 per cent of all male deaths and five per cent of all female deaths in the age group of 30 to 69. "We understand the dangers of smoking for many years and know that it increases the risk of not only lung cancer but also breast, colon, head and neck, cervix and bladder cancers. We've long suspected that exposure to passive smoking is a health risk that is as bad,' Dr Choudhury added. Encouraging those who want to quit this habit, he said the clinic would also provide guidance to quit tobacco over the phone, who do not come to the clinic. Majority of the smokers want to get rid of it, yet the successful quit rate is very low. For such people, proper motivation along with effective medication is a must, he added.