Tobacco shops can't sell soft drink, snacks

Sale of soft drinks, chips, toffees and other eatables at tobacco and cigarette shops will be banned in Lucknow city.

The Lucknow Municipal Corporation has prepared a team in each zone to crack down on tobacco shops selling eatables and soft drinks. The decision came following the guidelines of the Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act, 2003 (COTPA), which restricts selling of eatables at tobacco shops.

The municipal commissioner has issued orders to all eight zonal officials to survey all markets and residential areas in their zones and crack down on tobacco shops selling toffees and other eatables. The commissioner has written to the district administration to provide support to the drive.

A joint team of five departments-LMC, police, CMO, Food Safety and Drug Administration, state government and district administration-will raid these shops. While police have authority to impose a penalty of Rs 500-5,000 on tobacco shop owners selling eatables, FSDA department can even cancel licences of permanent shops.

LMC has the responsibility to remove shops running illegally on roadsides.

LMC's environment engineer Pankaj Bhushan said, "The drive is to prevent children from accessing tobacco shops. It is observed that while reaching out to these shops to buy chips, toffees and cold drinks, children also get access to tobacco products. To stop this and create awareness, LMC has launched the drive to remove eatables from these shops."

Courtesy:Times of India