Students take up fight against smuggling, counterfeiting

New Delhi, April 30 (IANS) Thousands of students from almost 100 schools in Delhi and the national capital region are participating in a five-day campaign against smuggling and counterfeiting, organisers said.

The campaign that began Monday aims to engage the youth of the country and involve them in the campaign against counterfeit and smuggled goods by creating awareness as to how these problems impact every citizen, they said.

The campaign is being organised by the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) committee on anti-smuggling and counterfeiting activities destroying the economy - FICCI-CASCADE - in association with a non-government organisation, Vikram Charitable Trust.

On the first day of the campaign that runs from April 30 to May 4, the participating students highlighted the problem of "counterfeit and smuggled goods and their impact on the economy through skits, painting competitions, essays and various other competitions", FICCI-CASCADE said in a statement.

"This committee represents the best possible partnership between government, industry and society. All united towards a common ill," said Anil Rajput, chairman of FICCI-CASCADE.

"Counterfeiting is a $600 billion a year problem, which has grown over 10,000 percent in the past two decades. It impacts all walks of life with share of fake/counterfeit medicines estimated at 15-20 percent of the total Indian market, soft drinks at 10 percent and fake cosmetics, toiletry and packaged foods at 10-30 percent," Rajput added.