Samaw.com

Chandigarh, the Union Territory, and also the capital of two states - Punjab and Haryana become the first Indian city to be officially declared as ’smoke-free’ on Sunday, July 15, 2007.

Smoking in all public areas, including hotels, restaurants and other buildings - other than designated smoking areas - has been banned in the city.

The Chandigarh police kept a vigil at the famous Sukhna Lake, Rock Garden and other areas popular for weekend outings even as smokers were made aware of the new rules.

It is learned that the residents of Chandigarh are happy with the move.

A University student Tanvi Rajpal was quoted as saying, ‘This is a very good step. Why should we suffer passive smoking and affect our health?’.

Chandigarh, also known as the ‘City Beautiful’ was planned by French architect Le Corbusier. It is sometimes refer as small New Delhi due to its good planning of the city.

Let’s hope the rest of India cities to follow this good example.