On the occasion of World No Tobacco Day, the Northeast Society for Promotion of Youth and Masses (NESPYM) today urged the State Government to take effective steps towards banning cigarette or any other tobacco product to any person under 18 years of age and in an area within 100 metres from the boundary wall of any educational institution. In a petition submitted to Chief Secretary to the Government of Assam, the NESPYM further asked the government to mobilise its system "to make and effect appropriate rules to carry out the provisions' of the Cigarettes and other Tobacco Products (Prohibition of advertisement and regulation of trade and commerce, production, supply and distribution, supply and distribution) Bill 2003. Prior to the submission of the petition, the NESPYM had carried out a signature campaign as part of its community mobilisation initiative against tobacco consumption in the various districts of Assam. More than 2,200 signatories, including children, had pledged not to consume tobacco in any form now and in the future and came together to support the petition. The NESPYM underlined the fact that consumption of tobacco was a cause of high morbidity and mortality. Studies reveal that 5,500 adolescents start using tobacco every day in India joining the four million young people under the age of 15 who are regular tobacco users. India also has a steady rise in deaths attributed to tobacco every year. From 1.4 per cent of all deaths in 1990 the number is expected to rise to 13.3 per cent in 2020. According to the WHO, India would have the highest rate of rise in tobacco related deaths during this period, compared to all other countries. In Assam the use of tobacco in various forms has been an important cause of morbidity and mortality. More concerning is the fact that much younger people have been initiated into tobacco use than ever before