According to sources in order to prevent children and school students getting easy access to tobacco, the Karnataka government is mulling a new special license, which will regulate the sale of cigarette and other forms of tobacco among shop owners. Meanwhile this special license will be issued to shops by respective urban local bodies, which will, in turn, help curb the easy availability of such products near educational institutions.
Furthermore UT Khader, Karnataka Minister for Urban Development and Housing and former Health Minister, told TNM, “At a recent quarterly meeting, we learnt that the tobacco products, especially cigarettes and beedis, are being sold in small shops and retail stores near schools. Moreover in addition to a normal trade license, shop owners should get a special license to sell tobacco and if this happens, we can not only curb the sale of tobacco, but also the sale of substances like ganja near educational institutions.”
Furthermore the minister said that currently, it is
not practical for the police to take action and book cases under Cigarettes and
Other Tobacco Products Act (COTPA). Moreover during his tenure as the Health
Minister, he had prohibited the sale of loose cigarettes and also expressed his
apprehension about other additives being mixed with tobacco. Hence,
implementation of the same has been lax after the first few weeks of the
announcement.
