The Maldives began implementing a smoking ban Saturday on anyone born after January 2007, becoming the only nation with a generational prohibition on tobacco, the Health Ministry said.The move, initiated by President Mohamed Muizzu earlier this year — which came into effect on November 1 — will “protect public health and promote a tobacco-free generation”, the ministry said.”Under the new provision, individuals born on or after January 1, 2007 are prohibited from purchasing, using, or being sold tobacco products within the Maldives,” it added.”The ban applies to all forms of tobacco, and retailers are required to verify age prior to sale.”The measure also applies to visitors to the nation of 1,191 tiny coral islets scattered some 800 kilometres (500 miles) across the equator and known for its luxury tourism.The ministry said it also maintains a comprehensive ban on the import, sale, distribution, possession, and use of electronic cigarettes and vaping products, applicable to all individuals regardless of age.Selling tobacco products to an underage person carries a penalty of 50,000 rufiyaa ($3,200), while using vape devices carries a fine of 5,000 rufiyaa ($320).A similar generational ban proposed in Britain is still going through the legislative process, while New Zealand — the first country to enact such a law against smoking — repealed it in November 2023, less than a year after it was introduced.

India batsman Shreyas Iyer has been discharged from hospital after lacerating his spleen when falling heavily in a one-day clash against Australia, cricket officials said Saturday.The 30-year-old vice-captain doubled over in pain after pulling off a sensational catch to remove Alex Carey in the third ODI in Sydney last week.The Indian ODI vice-captain was forced off the field and hospitalised.The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) said Saturday that he is “now stable and recovering well”, and that “he has been discharged from the hospital”.”Shreyas will continue to stay in Sydney for follow-up consultations and will return to India once he is deemed fit to fly,” it added.Iyer is not part of India’s T20 squad, which will play five matches in Australia that will serve as a tune-up for the T20 World Cup in India and Sri Lanka in February-March.He has scored 2,917 runs from 73 ODIs at an average of 47.81 since his ODI debut in 2017.

Bangladesh’s dock workers escalated a strike on Saturday at the country’s biggest port, Chattogram, protesting plans by the interim government to lease operating licences to a foreign company.The walkout, which began in small numbers in October, has now grown to around 200 workers at the port — Bangladesh’s main trade gateway and a vital hub in the global garment supply chain.”Foreign expert operators would increase the foreign investment and enhance the efficiency,” Chattogram Port Authority chairman S. M. Moniruzzaman told AFP.Bangladesh, the world’s second-largest garment exporter, relies heavily on Chattogram port — formerly known as Chittagong and strategically located on the Bay of Bengal — for most of its imports and exports.According to state-run news agency BSS, UAE-based DP World has expressed interest in operating the port’s New Mooring Container Terminal, and Danish shipping giant A.P. Moller–Maersk in the Laldia Container Terminal on the city’s outskirts.In October, Mohammed Yousuf, senior secretary at the Ministry of Shipping, said that “agreements are expected to be signed by December” with Bangladesh’s interim administration.The interim administration, which took over after the government of Sheikh Hasina was toppled in a mass uprising in August 2024, will be replaced after elections in February.The port move has sparked anger among some.”We don’t know if the new authority will hire us or restructure the entire system,” striking docker Nur Uddin, 55, told AFP on Saturday. “Do they even have the mandate? They are an interim government,” said Iliyas Bhuiyan, 56, another dockworker.But supporters say foreign expertise could modernise operations.”We need a globally reputed operator to increase the port’s capacity,” said Kabir Ahmed, president of the Bangladesh Freight Forwarders Association (BAFFA).”It will enhance cargo handling, boost revenue, and strengthen the country’s reputation.”But critics argue that leasing the facilities undermines control.”It makes no sense to lease the terminals that we developed and have been operating for the past 40 years,” said Azam J. Chowdhury, chairman of the Bangladesh Ocean Going Ship Owners’ Association (BOGSOA).