IndianEra > Government > India Bans e-cigarettes Amid Rising Health Concerns

In response to the rising health issues, the Government of India has announced a complete ban on the usage of e-cigarettes.

Indian Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced this at a cabinet meeting on September 18, 2019.

“Unfortunately, e-cigarettes got promoted initially as a way in which people can get out of the habit of smoking cigarettes. It was to be a weaning process from using cigarettes. The Cabinet rightly thought it is time and we immediately took a decision so that the health of our citizens, of our young, is not thrown to a risk,” said the Finance Minister.

Sitharaman informed that the government will soon pass the emergency ordinance banning Electronic Nicotine Delivery Systems (ENDS) and accordingly bring up the law in the coming Parliament session.

According to an official release, the ban covers complete production, manufacturing, trade, transport, sale, distribution, storage and advertisement of e-cigarettes, and also includes all forms of ENDS, heat-not-burn products and e-hookah devices.

“These novel products come with attractive appearances and multiple flavors and their use has increased exponentially and has acquired epidemic proportions in developed countries, especially among youth and children,” reads an official statement.

Violation of the ban subjects to one-year imprisonment or a fine of INR 100,000 (USD 1,400) or both. The penalty for subsequent offenses will be 5-year year imprisonment along with INR 500,000 (USD 7,000). The storage of such products causes 6-month imprisonment and a INR 50,000 (USD 700) fine.

The government’s decision for national ban is coming after similar reluctance from different Indian states.

Considering this, the government has asked all the e-cigarette vendors to declare and submit their remaining stocks and cartridges at the nearest police station.

E-Cigarettes Ban

e-cigarette Consumption, Globally

According to the Global State of Harm Reduction report, 39 countries have banned e-cigarettes or nicotine liquids so far.

The US Center for Disease Control and Prevention has recently ordered for a deep investigation into outbreak of lung-related issues linked to e-cigarette consumption.

The issue became serious with the recent deaths of seven people in the US due to vaping-related sickness. Further, hundreds of people in around 36 US States are being treated for lung-related illness.

Countries like UK encourage the use of e-cigarettes as a replacement to regular cigarettes.


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Posted by IndianEra, 20/09/2019