Punjab: Tobacco still being sold at kiosks outside schools

Punjab: Despite frequent crackdowns by the administration, guidelines under the Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act (COTPA) are being violated in the holy city. Cigarettes and tobacco products are being sold near educational institutions even as the rules say these products cannot be sold within 100 yards of an educational institution. While visiting various parts of the city, the Tribune team found that at the ground level there is no ban on the sale of tobacco products or the operation of shops selling such items, especially around educational institutions. Those selling tobacco products near schools and colleges can be penalised under COPTA. There is a paan shop near Hindu Collegiate Senior Secondary School where a vendor sells tobacco and cigarettes as freely as anywhere else. A shop selling paan masala and other tobacco products can be seen a few metres away from BBK DAV College.

Many shops sell cigarettes and other tobacco products by hanging packets of ‘bhujia’ and ‘namkeen’ in front to dodge the authorities. A shopkeeper was found selling tobacco products near a government primary school in Pawan Nagar area. Residents said shopkeepers decorate tobacco products outside their shops in the evening to attract customers. Similarly, tobacco products are being sold unhindered at a kiosk near the government medical college. At many places, shops and kiosks can be seen selling tobacco products at a distance of 100 yards from educational institutions. Last year, the administration, along with district health officials, had inspected several kiosks outside schools and colleges. But these shops have opened once again. Recently, a controversy had erupted after a Nihang Sikh entered the IIM-Amritsar campus and warned students not to smoke outside the institute.

It is located inside the government polytechnic. A video of the incident had gone viral on social media. The Nihang had allegedly threatened to chop off the hands of students who were seen smoking. According to the World Health Organisation, consumption of tobacco products causes many chronic diseases in India. Its consumption causes 1.35 million deaths every year. According to the Global Adult Tobacco Survey, 29 percent of adults in the country consumed tobacco in some form in 2016-17. According to the survey, the number of tobacco users is also increasing in Punjab. Amritsar was given the status of ‘smoke-free city’ in 2012. At that time several NGOs had launched a campaign against shops selling tobacco products near or around educational institutions. Under this initiative, all government departments were given challan books to punish violators in public places. Apart from the Health Department and the Police Department, no other government office joined the campaign.