E-cigarettes banned under law; no NCB cases of drug-laced vapes: Govt informs Parliament

The enforcement of the Act lies with the states and Union Territories, the Rajya Sabha was informed. File Pic/PTI

Asserting that electronic cigarettes (E-cigarettes) remain completely banned under Indian law, the government on Wednesday informed Parliament that no case related to the seizure of e-cigarettes and vape devices with narcotic substances has been investigated by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB).

In a written reply in the Rajya Sabha, Minister of State for Home Affairs Nityanand Rai said the production, manufacture, import, export, transport, sale, distribution, storage and advertisement of electronic cigarettes are prohibited under the Prohibition of Electronic Cigarettes (PECA) Act, 2019.

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The enforcement of the Act lies with the states and Union Territories through their law enforcement agencies.

Replying to reports that vape devices seized in different states contained narcotic substances such as methamphetamine and ketamine, the minister said the NCB has not investigated any such case.

On steps to strengthen screening at airports, ports and courier hubs, the government said agencies including the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) and the Customs maintain constant vigil through intelligence-based operations, passenger profiling using the advance passenger information system (APIS), risk-based interdiction and non-intrusive inspection methods such as baggage and container scanning.

Field formations are being regularly sensitised to newer methods of smuggling, while specialised K9 (canine) squads trained to detect narcotics have been deployed at airports to curb trafficking, Rai said, adding that action including arrest and prosecution is taken in accordance with law upon detection and seizure of narcotic drugs.

The minister also said there is no proposal at present to amend the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, 1985, in this regard.

On measures to protect students and address substance abuse, the government cited the 24/7 National Narcotics Helpline 'MANAS' (1933), which provides a single platform for citizens to report and track drug-related issues.

A separate toll-free de-addiction helpline (14446) has received more than 4.30 lakh calls so far. The Nasha Mukt Bharat Abhiyaan is being implemented across districts, reaching over 24.9 crore people, including youth and women, alongside awareness programmes in schools and colleges.

E-cigarettes have been in the news after BJP MP Anurag Thakur last week lodged a written complaint with Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, seeking action against a Trinamool Congress lawmaker for allegedly smoking an e-cigarette inside the House.

Thakur also raised the issue in the Lok Sabha without naming the MP. In his complaint, the Hamirpur MP said a TMC member was seen "openly using an electronic cigarette while seated in the House during the sittings", an act, he said, was clearly visible to several members and amounted to a violation of parliamentary decorum and a cognisable offence under the law.

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