In line with Swati Maliwal, MPs must speak against menace of vaping among children: Mothers Against Vaping

Mothers Against Vaping (MAV), a collective of mothers worried about the future of their children, has welcomed and applauded the intervention by Rajya Sabha MP Ms Swati Maliwal, who has raised the growing menace of vaping among children and adolescents in Parliament and called for strict enforcement of India’s ban on e-cigarettes and action against networks supplying these products to minors.

Raising the issue, Ms. Maliwal warned that vapes are increasingly being presented to school-going children as “safe”, “cool” and harmless, while social media, influencers and illicit sellers are making these nicotine products increasingly accessible to young users.

MAV expressed its appreciation to Ms Maliwal for bringing this critical issue of new-age nicotine products to the floor of Parliament and for continuing to draw attention to the growing accessibility and normalisation amongst the youth. Such interventions are important in strengthening public awareness and ensures that the issue receives the attention it deserves at the national level.

MAV believes that more Members of Parliament should come forward and support stronger action to protect India’s children and adolescents. MAV believes that protecting young people from new-age nicotine products is not a political issue and should not be viewed through partisan lines. It is a matter of child safety, public health and the future of the country, requiring collective action from all groups of society.

India’s existing prohibition must be comprehensively enforced across the expanding range of nicotine products and devices, including e-cigarettes, ENDS, vapes, HTPs, heat-not-burn and other novel formats. MAV augurs vigilance against foreign vested interests who are seeking to expand these products among young Indians, stressing that the country’s large youth population must not become a target market for these new-age nicotine products.

MAV also urged the Government to hold social media and e-commerce platforms accountable for the promotion, sale or distribution of prohibited new-age nicotine products. There should be stringent legal provisions and penal action against any platform or entity that facilitates or enables the promotion of banned products, particularly where such content or products adversely affect the health and safety of children and young people. Where existing laws and enforcement provisions apply, they must be used firmly against such violations; where gaps exist, stringent provisions should be introduced to ensure that no platform can become a channel for circumventing India’s prohibition on vapes. This is relevant in the context of numerous instances of violations that team MAV has been bringing to the attention of the Government from time to time. 

Commenting on the issue, Dr Bhavna Barmi – Clinical Psychologist & Founder, Happiness studio, and supporter of Mothers Against Vaping said, “India’s biggest social and economic dividend is its young population. We therefore cannot lose our next generation to designs of international addiction industry, seeking new markets. All parliamentarians should come together to strictly enforce ban on vapes and heat-not-burn devices and introduce ban on all forms of novel and new-age products like nicotine pouches, patches and gums.