Date:19/03/2008 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2008/03/19/stories/2008031960091200.htm

National

Buddhadeb defies smoking ban

Kolkata: Defying the blanket ban on smoking at the State Secretariat, West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee on Tuesday made it clear that he would continue to puff inside his office.

“Do you want to stop me from smoking?” Mr. Bhattacharjee retorted when asked by newsmen whether he had stopped smoking following the ban. When the reporters repeated their query, the Chief Minister said, “I will continue [to smoke].”

At the initiative of the State Pollution Control Board, the PWD had recently issued a notice banning smoking inside the Secretariat. — PTI