Thank You for No Smoking

Just the day before, as the country celebrated the 139th birth anniversary of the Father of the Nation, many eyes silently dropped a tear or two to express their anguish. Before your mind conjures up  any weird reason, let me add that the sorrow was borne out of a new law that has been enforced all over the country with effect from yesterday. Yes all you 120 million smokers, my heart goes out to you!

This is not for the first time that Supreme Court, the ever powerful and one of the very few Governmental bodies left in the country which is still sane, has passed a nationwide law with immediate and strict effect. Since time immemorial, we have been hearing about laws to make helmets compulsory, to prohibit drinking and driving and what not. But the problem, as many of us might have realised already, is that a law passed by the Legislative is like a donkey laden with luggage. It will not budge from its place unless its master, the Judiciary, takes the control in his hands. We have successfully managed to send many such laws down the drain owing to the 'Law Enforcers' not taking care of implementing it strictly. 

But just second day into the imposition, I am glad to find that this law is being revered the way a law should be. As I entered my office premises today, various flyers stating 'Smoking here is a legal offence' welcomed me. Even more surprising yet gratifying was the way the general public was reacting to it. Instead of it being just another rule that people hardly care to follow, I was amused when I actually overheard two of the senior officials at work talking in hushed voices about a place that was 'safe' for smoking! And after a few surreptitious glances here and there, they exited to have a smoke and 'relax', as many call it.

I have never had any special liking to smoking, nor any loathing towards smokers. But I always believe that sooting your lungs and calling it 'style' is actually gross. The other day, I was at a fancy restaurant with some of my friends. There was a special menu for cigars and cigarettes there. You would call me names if I said that a certain brand of cigar, just one piece of it, was priced at 1100 bucks! I mean, c'mon man, my monthly mess bill back in college was sometimes less than that! But the fact remains that people actually spend filthily when it comes to smoking. 

I have actually never stopped anyone from smoking. I have never even advised anyone on the ill-effects of smoking. Two reasons. One, everybody already knows smoking's not good for health. So no point me giving a discourse on that. Two, I think its everyone's personal choice. I don't know if this ban on smoking in public places would do any good to the smokers. But to the non-smokers, this is really a welcome respite from being forced to smoke passively. The question to ask now would be as to how far the Supreme Court and the Government succeed in making India a No-Smoking Zone...