Hyderabad: Despite the ban on hookah parlours, dozens of hangout places in the city are still serving hookah. The places have been converted to coffee shops or snooker parlours to evade police.
The management also allows teenagers into the parlour and lets them stay back past midnight to smoke hookah. Enforcement officials say they are yet to start their drive since Bonalu is going on.
Establishments like Filter Restaurant and Hookah, Pufs N. Pufs Hookah Parlour, Moment Hookah Parlours, K. Hookah, The Hookah House, Smokkin and Heavens 9 Pool & Hookah Parlour located in posh areas of Panjagutta, Himayatnagar, and Banjara Hills are still active, sources say.
Rachakonda police officials, meanwhile, said that they have started enforcement efforts to shut down the parlours. “We also had issued an order based on the Central government instructions. Out teams conducted simultaneous raids in a few areas. Four parlours were shut down after the raids,” said Rachakonda commissioner Mahesh Bhagwat.
Cyberabad police officials have also issued orders from the commissioner’s office. However, no crackdown has been conducted so far. Earlier, Hyderabad police had called for total shut down of hookah parlours in the city.
Senior police officials said that they are implementing the Central government’s new rule banning hookah smoking in establishments and at public place. As per the new rule, no hotel, restaurant, private club or parlour is allowed to let any of their customers smoke inside their premises. Though hookah parlours are not mentioned by the name in the ruling, it states that “no service shall be allowed in any smoking area or space provided for smoking”.
The order is issued by the ministry of health and family welfare amending the Prohibition of smoking in Public places, 2008. Establishment including airports have been asked to display ‘no smoking’ boards.
Hookah still on: Filter Restaurant & Hookah, Pufs N Pufs, Moment Hookah Parlour, K. Hookah, The Hookah House, Smokkin, Heavens 9 Pool & Hookah Parlour in Panjagutta, Himayatnagar and Banjara Hills still serve hookah.
