Bangladesh, June 11 -- Anti-tobacco advocacy groups PROGGA (Knowledge for Progress) and the Anti-Tobacco Media Alliance (ATMA) have expressed concern that the proposed national budget for fiscal year 2026-27 will make tobacco products more affordable, potentially increasing tobacco consumption while depriving the government of significant additional revenue.
In a joint quick budget reaction following the presentation of the proposed budget on Thursday, the two organisations said the government had introduced only a marginal increase in the price of low-tier cigarettes while leaving the prices and tax rates of bidis, gul and jarda unchanged.
According to the proposed budget, the retail price of a 10-stick pack of low-tier cigarettes will r...