30 cases booked, Rs.4,700 fine collected in Mysuru

Foreign cigarettes worth about Rs.1.5 crore seized in Bengaluru

Mysuru/ Bengaluru: In a move to curb tobacco menace in public places, officials of the District Health and Family Welfare Department, District Surveillance Office and District Tobacco Control Cell (DTCC), with the help of Nazarbad Police, raided shops which were selling tobacco products illegally by violating COTPA rules and have seized the tobacco products from the shops this morning.

A total of 30 cases were booked and Rs.4,700 fine has been collected.

The seizures were made based on intelligence reports gathered by the Health Department following which the raids were conducted, which was led by District Surveillance Officer Dr. Kusuma, District Consultant Shivakumar and Nazarbad Police.

COTPA aims at regulating the use of cigarettes and other tobacco products. As per the Act, if anyone is seen selling cigarettes or other tobacco products within 100 yards of campuses of educational institutions or selling tobacco products to minors (below 18 years), complaints can be filed against the person at the nearest Police Station.

Action has been taken to enforce the ban under Sections 4, 5, 6 and 6 B of the COTPA. Section 4 of COTPA bans smoking in public places, Section 5 bans all forms of direct and indirect advertisements, Section 6 bans sale of tobacco products to minors, Section 6B prohibits sale of tobacco products within 100 yards from schools/ colleges.

At Bengaluru

Customs officials have seized foreign-made cigarettes worth Rs.1.5 crore being transported from Howrah to Bengaluru in two trains. The seizures were made based on intelligence report gathered by customs officials, following which they had kept vigil to check the goods arriving on the trains originating from Howrah. On June 8, the officers verified the cargo unloaded from Yeswantpur Duronto Express at Yeswantpur Railway Station and identified 15 suspicious parcels. On verification, they found that the parcels contained foreign-made cigarettes of different brands, as against the contents declared as “cotton clothes.”

After the seizing, the customs officials rushed to Krantivira Sangolli Rayanna Railway Station where another cargo of five suspicious parcels was intercepted. While 58 cartons containing 5.8 lakh cigarettes of various brands were seized from the first train, 15 cartons containing 1.5 lakh cigarettes were seized from the second train. IT is learnt that these foreign-made cigarettes were contraband items and were prohibited from selling in the country as there were no pictorial health warnings on them.