TN tops in cases lodged under Tobacco Products Act: NCRB

NEW DELHI: The number of cases registered for environment-related offences has increased by four per cent as compared to the previous year, according to the Crime in India report released by the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) for 2021. In 2021, 64,471 such cases were registered, compared to 61,767 in 2020 and 34,676 in 2019.

As per the report, a maximum number of offences (54,024) was registered under the Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act, followed by 7,217 under the Noise pollution act and 2,292 cases under The Forest Act and The Forest Conservation Act category. Tamil Nadu registered the highest number of cases, 46, 458, of which 46, 433 are under the Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act and 23 under the Noise Pollution Act. This was followed by Rajasthan with 9,387 cases with 7163 cases under Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act, 1873 under the Noise Pollution Act, 224 under the Forest Act and 106 under the Wildlife Protection Act. In addition 19 cases were registered in Rajasthan under the Air and the Water (Prevention & Control of Pollution) Act.

Environment-related offences include violations of the Forest Act, the Forest Conservation Act, the Wild Life (Protection) Act, The Environmental (Protection) Act, the Air and the Water (Prevention & Control of Pollution) Act, the Cigarette and Other Tobacco Products Act, Noise Pollution Acts and the National Green Tribunal Act. The report alos pointed that the chargesheet rate of states like Andhra Pradesh, Manipur, Sikkim, Mizoram, Nagaland and Odisha is 100 per cent.

Uttar Pradesh recorded the highest number of cases, 1318, under The Forest Act and The Forest Conservation Act, followed by Jharkhand with 265 cases. Rajasthan recorded 99 per cent of cases (7163 out of 7217 cases) under Noise Pollution Act followed by 24 cases in Tamil Nadu.