The new rule, which also entails a fine up to Rs 50,000, extends to distribution, import and advertisement of e-cigarettes.
Users and sellers, including online, of e-cigarettes in Gujarat now face jail up to 3 years, with the Assembly clearing a bill banning the handheld battery-powered vaporisers and products with an electronic nicotine delivery system. The ban covers vape, e-sheesha, e-nicotine and flavoured hookah.
Presenting the bill to amend Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products (COTPA) Act, Minister of State (home) Pradeepsinh Jadeja said it is imperative to ensure that the law keeps pace with the arrival of varied methods of consuming tobacco.
"Already 12 states in the country including UP, Bihar, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka have banned e-cigarettes. Thirty countries across the world have also placed a ban on the same," said Jadeja, justifying the move.
The new rule, which also entails a fine up to Rs 50,000, extends to distribution, import and advertisement of e-cigarettes. It comes in the middle of a raging debate over the risk posed by e-cigarettes.
"The COTPA Act was not applicable to e-cigarettes because it did not have a definition of the same. With the new bill we will ensure that the ban is effectively implemented," said Jadeja.
Ashok Koyani, who is associated with the Tobacco Control Programme of the state government, said that the bill is welcome but it needs to be ensured that the state government effectively implements the ban. Koyani stressed the need to focus on vendor licensing for shops that sell tobacco.
"Vendor licencing ensures that any person who wishes to sell tobacco has to seek a licence from local authorities. This will also prevent such shops from operating in and around schools. Many of the tobacco addicts get into the habit at a very young age and if we can prevent it, it will go a long way in preventing people from taking up the habit," said Koyani.
During the debate on the bill, Dr Anil Joshiyara reminded the House that laws, however strict they may be, are useless in the absence of effective implementation. "There is prohibition in the state yet we continue to hear about the availability of alcohol. While the ban on e-cigarettes is welcome as it affects the health of our youth, we need to ensure that we are strict about its implementation too."
State Justifies...
- E-cigarettes, meant to help people quit smoking are harmful
- 12 states in India and 30 countries have already banned it
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