LUCKNOW: A deadline of 10 days has been set to
control the sale of tobacco in the city. Thereafter, only licensed vendors will sell tobacco products.
Officials of Lucknow Municipal Corporation on Wednesday set up a committee under additional municipal commissioner
Manoj Kumar Singh to adopt the new tobacco prevention policy and enforce it in Lucknow over 10 days.
LMC also held a workshop with corporators to seek their support in controlling the rampant unauthorised sale of tobacco products. Corporators have been asked to survey their wards soon and identify the total number of
authorised tobacco vendors operating in their wards.
They have to submit the vendors' list to the committee soon for the licence to be granted over the next 10 days at a fee of Rs 5,000.
Mayor Sanyukta Bhatia said only
licensed tobacco vendors will be allowed after the deadline. The committee will also deploy a team to check that no vendor exists within a 100-yard periphery of any school or religious place.
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LMC had announced restricting and regulating tobacco sales in the city in March. However, it has swung into action now and fixed a 10-day deadline to implement the rules. The action, though late, is a welcome move. However, given LMC’s poor record in timely execution of policies, it is to be seen whether it will be able to meet the deadline. In the past, LMC has often failed in implementing decisions requiring huge manpower for sustained monitoring such as penalising those dumping and burning garbage. For tobacco sales regulation, LMC should make a plan in advance and tie up with other civic agencies, district administration and police so that there is no shortage of hands for the herculean task.
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