New Delhi: The government’s decision to ban e-cigarettes and vaping earlier this month attracted protests in several parts of the country on Saturday. Scores of vapers, harm reduction advocates, medical professionals and members of the legal fraternity opposed the government’s approval of “Prohibition of E-cigarettes Ordinance 2019" and called for regulation instead of complete ban. This is a knee-jerk reaction to a new tobacco harm reduction route, which needs regulation not a ban," said National coordinator for the protests Jagannath Sarangapani, based in Hyderabad. Maneesh Kasera who switched to vaping in his 50s after decades of smoking called for regulation instead of complete ban on vaping. If the government turns deaf ears to our demands, we will be forced to challenge it legally," Samrat Chowdhery, AVI director and harm reduction advocate, said.

Source: Mint September 28, 2019 14:48 UTC