The crusade against vaping must involve not just mothers but the whole societysince these new-age nicotine delivery products are way more harmful than conventional smoking,” said BJP National Spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla, as he joined Padma Shri awardee Dr Deepa Malik at the launch of a nationwidecampaign titled ‘Please STOP This’ aimed to combat the growing menace of novel nicotine delivery products such as vapes, e-cigarettes, heat-not-burn devices, and nicotine pouches among Indian children and youth.
“I identify a 4S strategy to keep our kids safe from such new-age addiction,” he said.
“The whole of ‘Samaj’ or Indian society must step in for stopping this menace; While ‘Sarkar’ or the government has put into place stringent laws, we must ensure that implementing agencies and law enforcement agencies should crack down more strictly; we must also have a positive presence on ‘Social Media’ since our kids are on social media. We all need to be there too to drive out the negative messages that project vaping to look “cool”; we must project positive activities, such as gymming or running, as cool things. Last, but extremely important is ‘Sports’ since it is the best panacea for keeping kids away from the menace of vapes and addiction to such dangerous new-age devices,”Poonawalla added.
‘Please STOP This’ is an initiative of Mothers Against Vaping (MAV), a collective of concerned mothers dedicated to combating the
growing crisis of novel nicotine delivery products such as vapes, e-cigarettes, heat-not-burn devices, and nicotine pouches among Indian children and youth.
MAV’s ‘Please STOP This’ campaign is powered by a study that exposes the alleged hidden agendas and tactics of multinational tobacco companies attempting to bypass the current ban on these products in India.
The study, based on extensive research from available medical and non-medical sources, as well as past legal cases and media investigations, reveals strategies and tactics employed by manufacturers of these products to influence policy and alter public opinion.
