‘Ban on e-cigarettes anti-people, will put lives of 1.8 million in state in danger’

The Association of Vapers India (AVI) has termed the state government’s ban on e-cigarettes as anti-people. They claim it would imperil the lives of over 1.8 crore smokers in the state.

AVI had last year filed a public interest litigation (PIL) in the Karnataka High Court against the ban on e-cigarettes. It had submitted in court scientific evidence from organisations such as the US FDA, Public Health England and the American Cancer Society to further its claim.

The petition stated smokers in the state have a legitimate right to reduce harm by transitioning to less harmful alternatives.

AVI director Samrat Chowdhery said, “The ban on e-cigarettes is arbitrary and unjustified. Electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS) are a smoking replacement option without the harmful chemicals found in combustible cigarettes, which significantly reduces cancer risk. Banning their use while allowing cigarettes to be sold violates basic principles of public health; protects the tobacco industry and criminalises citizens who are trying to avoid tobacco-related death and disease.”

Dr Aparajeet Kar, consultant pulmonologist, Narayana Health, Bengaluru, said, “E-cigarettes produce aerosol by using a battery to heat a solution of nicotine and flavouring agents. Since they don’t burn tobacco, there is no tar or carbon monoxide produced.”

He added, “Thousands of highly toxic chemicals cause the harm from smoking conventional cigarettes. Benzo(a)pyrene, a known lung cancer carcinogen, is absent in e-cigarettes. One of the major benefits of vaping is the ability to control the amount of nicotine that a person is ingesting. So far, there is no evidence that vaping (smoking e-cigarettes) causes harm to other people which is in contrast to passive smoking that kills 800,000 people every year.”

AVI is a consumer rights group that represents e-cigarette users across the country.