Mothers Against Vaping backs Maliwal's Parliament intervention on vapes, e-cigarettes

Mothers Against Vaping backs Maliwal's Parliament intervention on vapes, e-cigarettes

New Delhi, Mothers Against Vaping has welcomed Rajya Sabha MP Swati Maliwal's intervention in Parliament on the growing menace of vaping among children and adolescents and called for strict enforcement of India's ban on e-cigarettes and action against networks supplying them to minors.

Mothers Against Vaping backs Maliwal's Parliament intervention on vapes, e-cigarettes

Mothers Against Vaping is a collective of concerned mothers working to protect children and young people from new-age gateway nicotine products, including vapes, e-cigarettes, Heated Tobacco Products , heat-not-burn devices, nicotine pouches, and similar products.

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.

"These days, young school-going children are harming their health by considering vapes and e-cigarettes 'safe'. This is a matter of serious concern. The government took a commendable step by imposing a ban on the sale of vapes, but even today, some suppliers are reaching children through social media, and certain shopkeepers are covertly distributing these products," Maliwal said in a post on X.

"This is not a cool, harmless trend. It is pushing children towards nicotine addiction and playing with their health, focus and future. All states should strictly enforce this ban. Schools, parents, police and local administration must work together to take immediate action against such networks. I raised this issue in Parliament because there can be no compromise with the health and future of children," she said.

In a statement, MAV expressed its appreciation to Maliwal for bringing the issue of new-age nicotine products to Parliament and drawing attention to their growing accessibility and normalisation among the youth.

"Such interventions are important in strengthening public awareness and ensures that the issue receives the attention it deserves at the national level," it said.

"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," the MVA said.

It said the issue was 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 said.

It also urged vigilance against foreign vested interests seeking to expand these products among young Indians, stressing that the country's large youth population must not become a target market for new-age nicotine products.

MAV 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," it said.

Commenting on the issue, Dr Bhavna Barmi, clinical psychologist, founder of Happiness Studio, 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."

MAV said collective action from Parliament and governments to schools, parents, law enforcement, healthcare professionals and society at large is required to ensure that India's children do not become the next generation of nicotine users.

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