567 challans issued, Rs 65,300 collected under tobacco act in 24 hours: HP Police

The Himachal Police had conducted a special statewide search drive near educational institutions across the state as part of the ongoing “Chitta-Free Himachal” anti-drug campaign, officials said on Saturday.

During the state-level operation on Friday, 1,949 identified shops and vendors near educational institutions were thoroughly inspected.

The search was carried out by teams of the District Police and the Special Task Force (STF) as part of a coordinated enforcement effort.

“As a result of the drive, five cases were registered under the The Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act (COTPA), 2003, and one case under the Excise Act.

In addition, 567 challans were issued under the COTPA Act and four challans under the Non-Biodegradable Waste (Control) Act.

A total fine of Rs 65,300 was collected under the COTPA Act… a significant quantity of prohibited tobacco products, including cigarettes and bidis, was also seized,” the police spokesperson said.

The spokesperson also said that the purpose of this coordinated drive was to further strengthen the objectives of the campaign by ensuring strict compliance with the provisions of the NDPS Act and the COTPA Act, particularly in areas surrounding the schools and the colleges across the state.

The police spokesperson said the anti-drug initiative was conducted in a systematic and intelligence-based manner with strong inter-district coordination to ensure lawful, safe and effective enforcement.

The key objective of the campaign is to protect young people from falling into drug abuse and also to prevent the development of group-based substance abuse activities around isolated areas near educational institutions, which often attract and influence new users, the spokesperson said.

Stay updated with the latest -Click here to follow us on Instagram