The Ministry of Health is dissatisfied with the work of the police and the Health Inspection Authority regarding the control of smoking in public places, the results do not satisfy the Minister, the Ministry of Health has adopted new strictures and a new approach.
A new system will be launched from 2025, the ministry intends to establish public control in the anti-tobacco fight through registrations in the newly created application. The new application, created by the Ministry of Health, will be operated by citizens, people who will notice illegal smokers around them by marking the location and calling the police.
"Both the police and inspection bodies of the Ministry of Internal Affairs are the controlling bodies in the matter of law enforcement, but their resources are very few, so this application will contribute to the efficiency of their work," Deputy Minister of Health Lena Nanushyan expressed this opinion in a conversation with Armenian Zhamanak.
"According to the current law, each inspectorate has its own function to ensure that cigarettes are not sold openly and are not sold to children. The police of the Ministry of Internal Affairs monitors the observance of the ban on smoking in restaurants or cafes.
The deputy minister is convinced that this will bring vigilance to various organizations, because not everyone will want to appear on the map of the application. Citizens will not feel constrained to report their violations, the deputy minister says, no identification will be required in the application, the alarm will be easy and fast.
