Information given on COTPA 2003, COTPA Chhattisgarh (Amendment) Act 2021 and PECA-2019
Training given to officers of health, excise, police and higher education, school education department
Raipur, March 28.
Department of Health and Family Welfare convened a state-level workshop yesterday in order to successfully implement tobacco control policies and initiatives in Chhattisgarh. A one-day workshop was held at Naveen Vishram Bhavan, Civil Line, Raipur, to train state and district level nodal officers from the Health Department, Excise Department, Police Department, Higher Education Department, and School Education Department.
The workshop was organized under the joint aegis of the State Tobacco Control Unit Chhattisgarh and the Bloomberg Project Chhattisgarh, and thorough discussions were held to execute tobacco control policies and programs more successfully in the future. The workshop briefed tobacco control officials about the provisions of the COTPA Act 2003, the COTPA Chhattisgarh (Amendment) Act 2021, and the E-Cigarette Ban Act 2019. Instructions were given to take action in accordance with the requirements of the Act.
State Nodal Officer of the National Tobacco Control Program, Dr. Kamlesh Jain, stated that tobacco de-addiction centers are operating in all district hospitals to help people quit smoking. Despite this, tobacco and e-cigarettes have had an impact on the state’s school children. Tobacco is used by 39.10% of the state’s population. To properly combat this, all state educational institutions must be tobacco-free. He stated that the rules for tobacco-free educational institutions must be mandatory in all educational institutions.
Senior Technical Advisor, The Union Sanstha, Dr. Amit Yadav provided thorough information on the Bloomberg initiative project’s implementation in Chhattisgarh, action on violations of tobacco advertisement and visual health warnings, and the various factors that affect the health. He stated that Union and Pahal Foundation manage the Tobacco Monitor app in the state. Apart from this, Pahal Foundation’s technical advisor, Mr. Ashish Singh, provided technical information about the Tobacco Monitoring App.
Menawhile, Supreme Court Advocate Mr. Ranjit Singh and Program Manager of Voluntary Health Association of India Mr. Binoy Mathew gave information on the implementation of E-Cigarette Ban Act (PECA) 2019 and Hookah Bar Ban (Chhattisgarh Amendment) COTPA Act- 2021. According to Shri Singh, the use of e-cigarettes is fast expanding; yet, due to their odorless nature, they are difficult to detect, and the youth population is the most affected. Many are unaware that they are using nicotine, which is officially prohibited in 18 states. NTCP State Legal Advisor , Mrs. Khyati Jain, provided detailed information on the implementation and issues of smoke-free and tobacco-free institutes under COTPA during the workshop.
