THANE: The Food and Drug Administration’s ( FDA ) two-year-old anti-tobacco awareness drive, which focussed on educating school principals about their power to shut down illegal tobacco shops in the school’s vicinity, seems to have fizzled out this year resulting in numerous such stores mushrooming around educational institutions.In an attempt to curb this sale of tobacco products around schools and to minors as per the Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act (COTPA), the FDA had organised a four-day awareness workshop for civic school principals in February 2016, informing them that they too, along with police sub-inspectors, civic surgeons and FDA officials could shut down these stores and levy fines on them.While the year following this drive saw dozens of these academicians actively working and shutting 200 such tobacco shops in their school’s vicinity, this past year has seen these shops coming back into business.“I tried to ensure that the tobacco shops in my area were shut for a long time. But they kept opening again. This past year has been very hectic with numerous government resolutions being issued adding to usual school chaos. I realised that I was one of the few principals actually chasing these stores. I have stopped doing that now. Instead, I ask my teachers to discuss the evils of smoking with students,” said a civic school principal.Dr Pradip Uppal, ENT surgeon, who collaborated with FDA and civic body on the awareness aspect of the drive, added, “With the busy schedules of these academicians, it is very difficult to get outstanding results continuously. We all need to be vigilant as citizens and ensure that the officials shut these shops down. While the drive has simmered down, we are still visiting schools to inform students about the dangers of smoking.”As the FDA organised the drive only for civic school principals, the academicians of many private and government-aided schools, who have witnessed a rise in the number of students caught smoking are still oblivious that they can actually fine these tobacco selling establishments and shut them.“Our school and junior college is near the station and the entire road has numerous tobacco sellers. We have even caught students smoking in the small lanes nearby after school hours and informed their parents about it. These numbers have been increasing recently,” said a teacher from MH College “We have recently been spotting our students smelling of cigarettes and are extremely worried about the fact that there are two tobacco shops near our school. A cigarette seller comes on a cycle. This easy availability could influence our young students. The government departments need to include us also in such drives,” added a teacher from Holy Cross High School for girls.We have recently been spotting our students smelling of cigarettes and are extremely worried about the fact that there are two tobacco shops near our school. A cigarette seller comes on a cycle. This easy availability could influence our young students. The government departments need to include us also in such drives

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