You see more of them these days. They are what some call street 'parties' or 'groupies'.
They can be found outside malls and office buildings, looking increasingly alienated and frustrated.
They are the outcasts, smokers who have been banished from most places because of stiffer rules that took effect on Jan 1.
Said smoker Damien Lee, 25, an accounts executive working in Shenton Way: 'While the move is better for non-smokers, we waste a lot of time finding a legal place to smoke.
'My supervisor said he noticed that I have been taking up a lot of work time just going for a smoke break.'
But some still light up in prohibited areas and get caught.
Said a spokesman for the National Environment Agency (NEA): 'As of 7 Jan, 482 smokers were advised against smoking in the areas where the smoking ban was recently extended to.'
The majority were caught smoking at entrances to buildings. Others were caught at lift lobbies, and multi-storey and basement carparks.
Another smoker, Mr Habib S, 32, said that even the usual 'hideouts' have been discovered by attentive security guards at his office building.
Mr Habib, a logistics clerk, said: 'We used to 'improvise' by smoking in the building stairwells.
'Now, it's hard to do so when there's a no-smoking sign staring back at you. When you get caught, it's hard to plead ignorance.'
Smoking is now banned at lift lobbies, shops, non-air-conditioned shopping centres and playgrounds.
Added Mr Habib: How to remember all the places where smoking is banned?
'I used to think that if I see a dustbin, that's a safe place to smoke.'
The NEA said that about 120 officers are deployed daily to carry out enforcement against smoking and other public health related offences.
Said non-smoker Kelvin Deva Raj, 20: 'Sometimes I pity them (smokers) because even when it's raining, you will see a few of them huddling under one umbrella to smoke.
'Previously, it was more convenient for them to smoke under the shelter of a building entrance. But now, that's illegal.'
First-time offenders can be fined $200. Those caught again can be fined up to $1,000.
This article was first published in The New Paper on Jan 11, 2009.
