Harsher punishment from next week awaits vendors selling cigarettes and other tobacco products near educational institutions in the state capital.

The anti-tobacco squad and district tobacco control committee comprising senior administrative personnel and police officials will start raids on shops selling tobacco products near schools and colleges from mid-February.

Offenders will be booked under the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act of 2015 (commonly known as the JJ Act), with a jail term of up to seven years and a fine of Rs 1 lakh.

“We have decided to enforce the JJ Act against the violators this time as against the existing practice of punishing offenders under Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Product Act (Cotpa 2003) as the JJ Act has more stringent punishment terms and would serve as a deterrent for the violators,” said Ranchi deputy development commissioner (DDC) Ananya Mittal.

The DDC had chaired a meeting of the district tobacco control committee last week.

Under the JJ Act, which is applicable for minors (below 18 years), selling cigarettes and other tobacco products (including pan masala, bidi, khaini and gutka) within a 100-yard radius of any school and college attracts a jail term up to seven years along with a fine of Rs 1 lakh. Under Cotpa 2003, the violators only attract a penalty of Rs 200 or a jail term of up to three months.

In 2017, the health ministry had issued an advisory saying that tobacconists should not be allowed to sell sweets, biscuits, chips and soft drinks alongside tobacco products as this may attract non-users of tobacco, specially children.

“The Union government also said all tobacconists should be registered with local civic authorities and should not sell other edible items alongside tobacco,” said a member of the district tobacco control committee who is also member of an NGO. “The purpose was to regulate the sale of tobacco products. However, one can easily find vendors selling tobacco products near almost most of the educational institutions in Ranchi. This apart most of the shopkeepers even in areas other than educational institutions do not display signage warning of health hazards of consuming tobacco products, which is also a violation of Cotpa 2003.”

There are nearly 200 schools (including state-owned, CBSE and ICSE affiliated) in the Ranchi city area.

Shopkeepers are keeping their fingers crossed. “I have been selling tea, biscuits and even cigarettes from this makeshift shop for the last three decades,” said Rajiv Sao, a shopkeeper near Tharpakhna Rajkiya Madhya Vidyalaya.

“There had been raids earlier too but we managed by paying a fine of Rs 200 to the team. We are not aware of any new laws. Let’s see what happens.”