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BENGALURU: On Friday, the government ordered bars, pubs, restaurants and hotels to have only standing rooms for smokers. Food, chairs, tables, ashtrays, matchboxes and lighters should not be allowed, said a circular from the Directorate of Municipal Administration.
Similarly, non-smokers and those under 18 should not be allowed to enter these areas. This initiative aims to protect non-smokers from the dangers of second-hand smoke. Smoking is allowed in designated smoking areas only after obtaining a No Objection Certificate (NOC) from the relevant civic organization, which will verify if the restaurant can accommodate more than 30 people. If these rules are broken, the restaurant / bar / pub serves to lose its license.
UT Khader, Minister of Urban Development and Housing of Karnataka, warned Monday: "Recent studies have shown that there is no passive smoking, we are concerned about the health of staff working in the hotels and bars, and guests especially women and children. "
"In light of all the scientific evidence pointing out that passive smoking is as harmful as smoking, we need to address this problem first and foremost, the world's largest cities have largely demonstrated that creating a smoke-free hotel environment improves business, "said Khader. added.
"We are confident that hotels and bar associations in the country will welcome this initiative, and hotels, clubs and bars have the legal and moral responsibility to protect the right to health of their staff and their families. customers, "said Khader. safety is just as important as health.
According to the circular, the fire department had expressed a concern about fire safety in bars and restaurants in a letter in which it was stated that sources of naked flames such as smoking were potential causes of fire.
The circular was published as part of the joint consultation meeting "Advancing Urban Health Policies – Essential Policies for the Prevention of Noncommunicable Diseases", organized by the Government of Karnataka on Monday in association with the National Center for Computer and Disease Research (NCDIR), Association of Health Care Providers (India) and the Association of Institutions Accredited by National Councils.
According to the World Health Organization, noncommunicable diseases (NCDs), mainly cardiovascular diseases such as stroke, diabetes, cancer and lung diseases are attributable to nearly 61% of deaths in India . In 2008, NCDs caused 5.2 million deaths. Tobacco is one of the risk factors for NCDs and, worldwide, 14% of all adult NCD deaths are attributable to tobacco.
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