Pakistan is paying a steep price for tobacco consumption. Each year, tobacco claims 164,000 lives and drains the economy of nearly Rs700 billion in healthcare costs and productivity losses. But, no matter how regrettable these numbers are, tobacco also contributes significantly to the national exchequer through taxes, creating a moral and fiscal dilemma for policymakers.

This contradiction lies at the heart of Pakistan's tobacco control struggle. On one hand, increased........

© The Express Tribune