Following the Cigarette and other Tobacco Products (COTPA) 2003 guidelines, Ranchi district administration along with the other stakeholders working in the respective domain to curtail tobacco use on Wednesday formed a team and inspected few shops situated along the road sides. The team also conducted raid at few public places recklessly violating the set norms. Ranchi DC, Manoj Kumar has asked the officials to form a separate Tobacco Control Cell at every block to address the issue and to create awareness about the same.
In an attempt to restrain the sale of intoxicated products in capital city and to put a hold of sellers those breaching the rules and Supreme Court (SC) guidelines, a meeting was conducted by Ranchi DC, Manoj Kumar with the members of Socio Economic and Educational Development Society (SEEDS) on Wednesday.
According to the experts, approximately 2700 people die every day across the country after consuming some or the other types of tobacco products. Explaining various legal aspects of Cigarette and other Tobacco Products (Prohibition of Advertisement and Regulation of Trade and Commerce, Production, Supply and Distribution) Act (COTPA), 2003, Director, SEEDS, Deepak Mishra described the penalty charges in detailed way explaining the people its consequences present during the workshop.
The rigorous implementation of the law to curtail the sale is the must to curb the growing addiction among the public especially the teenagers while involving various mass media to disseminate the information about the intoxicating products, said, Mishra.
Earlier too the district administration under the aegis of National Tobacco Control organization programme conducted a meeting with the officials to control the use of additive products. During the meeting, DC Ranchi laid emphasis on involving people from different segments of the society in the campaign against tobacco and advertise about its hazardous effects on health through short films, audio-video mediums.
The district administration will soon act sternly on the hookah bars that have mushroomed across the capital city and are often visited by minors breaching the age guidelines. Ranchi DC and DDC, BK Singh has instructed the officials to soon conduct raids at all the hookah bars running in the State Capital.