Superintendent of Police (SP) K.K.N. Anburajan said that strict action would be taken against those who smoke in public places and sell tobacco products within 100 meters of educational institutions across Anantapur district.
Addressing the media here on Friday, the SP said that to effectively implement the Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act (COTPA), the National Tobacco Control Program (NTCP) and the State Public Health Department conducted a comprehensive training program for the police in the district. He said that around 48,000 deaths occur every year in Andhra Pradesh due to tobacco-related health complications and the training on COTPA will enable the police to implement the law effectively.
Dr. Vijayanand Reddy, cancer specialist and director of Apollo Cancer Hospital, Hyderabad, said that 90% of mouth and lung cancers were caused due to the use of tobacco products. “Preventive measures implemented by the police can save more lives than the combined efforts of all the doctors in the state to curb tobacco use. Surprisingly in A.P., more than 250 children use tobacco products per day on an average while in India an average of 5,500 children use tobacco products every day,” he said.
Anantapur District NCD program officer Narayana Swamy said that results of the Global Youth Tobacco Survey (GYTS) highlighted that 33.6% of the 13-15 age demographic in the State are tobacco users.
