A tobacco shop opposite Christ Church Diocesan School in Patna. Picture by Ranjeet Kumar Dey

A programme to sensitise police officers in rural areas on the need to control tobacco sale and use around schools will be organised in the capital on Sunday.

Non-government organisations Population Service International and SEEDS would hold the programme at AN Sinha Institute of Social Studies. They had organised a similar programme for police officers in urban areas on August 5, as despite provisions of the Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products (Prohibition of Advertisement and Regulation of Trade and Commerce, Production, Supply and Distribution) Act, 2003, the sale of tobacco products has not stopped.

The programmes are part of a project of the central government to spread awareness on curbing the sale and consumption of tobacco-related products.

The NGOs are supporting National Tobacco Control Programme, Patna, in sensitising police officers and school principals to ban smoking in public places, especially around educational institutions.

Senior superintendent of police Amrit Raj said: “Banning sale and use of tobacco is an important move and that is the reason it is taking time. We will see to it that shops near educational institutions stop selling tobacco products.”

Rajnish Choudhary, the nodal officer of the National Tobacco Control Programme, Patna, told The Telegraph: “We have started sensitising police officers and principals of various government schools in Patna and Munger. Now, we have selected 20 government schools and awareness programmes have been organised at half of the institutions. At every programme, we ensure that 100 children and 15 teachers attend it.”

He added that police officers of the rank of sub-inspector and above in urban police stations had taken part in the programme organised on August 5. “Government schools in Patna and Munger districts are being covered in the pilot project.”

A teacher from Sir GD Patliputra Interstariya Vidyalaya, Kadamkuan, said: “There are a few shops selling tobacco products outside our school. We cannot forget that children are highly affected if any such things are sold near school. They are tempted by tobacco products and consume them without realising the health hazards.”

Sale of tobacco products continues to be a problem around private institutions. Few private institutions in the state capital, including Christ Church Diocesan School (near Gandhi Maidan) and Bankipore Girls’ High School (near Golghar), have tobacco shops outside the campus.

Choudhary said the private schools would also be brought under the awareness programmes later.

Avinash Chandra Dubey, the co-ordinator of Christ Church Diocesan School, said: “Tobacco products should not be sold outside schools. Children are soft targets and such things easily affect them.”

COTPA Act, 2003, is applicable to all the products that contain tobacco and also bans smoking in public places. Signs like “Smoking here is strictly prohibited” is also mandatory to be displayed in all public places, states the act.