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7 Chinese cities all fired up to curb smoking 

About 60 per cent of its men and 3 per cent of women are hooked. Passive smokers number 540 million, the most in the world. A million people die from tobacco-related reasons every year, also the most in the world.

'China is a world leader in its smoking problems. It is not something to be proud of,' health-care analyst Wu Yiqun told The Straits Times. 'With so many 'firsts', we are desperately in need of some measures to control smoking.'

The latest move has been applauded, even though it comes four years after China made a similar pledge under a United Nations treaty. The seven cities - Shanghai, Wuxi, Ningbo, Changsha, Luoyang, Tangshan and Qingdao - want to end indoor smoking to protect children and pregnant women. Few details have been released, and no timeline or targets set.

'Most people would support such a move,' said Professor Zhao Liang of the China Academy of Health Policy in Beijing University. 'With better living standards and rising awareness of the ill effects of smoking, the number of smokers in China will be reduced.'

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