There are serious concerns about the illegal promotion of new-age gateway devices endangering the lives of adolescents and the youth across India. Mothers Against Vaping, a united front of concerned mothers combating the escalating vaping crisis among our youth, has released an investigative report titled, “Unmasking the Appeal – How Vapes & E-Cigarettes Continue to be Promoted Unabated in India”, exposing the alleged covert strategies employed by global vaping and e-cigarette brands to infiltrate India’s digital landscape, circumventing the Prohibition of Electronic Cigarettes Act (PECA) of 2019.
Despite the ban, these entities exploit media loopholes, leveraging digital platforms, influencer marketing, and surrogate advertising to glamorise their products. The comprehensive analysis reveals a disturbing trend: the deliberate targeting of Indian youth through social media channels.
Platforms like Instagram and Facebook are inundated with content portraying vaping as a trendy, harmless lifestyle choice. Influencers, often with substantial followings, are co-opted to promote these products, masking their dangers under the guise of modernity and sophistication. Influencers have emerged as stealth marketers—turning reels, reviews, and jokes into powerful tools of vape promotion. From casual endorsements masked as lifestyle content to creative smoke tricks that mimic skill, the influencer ecosystem plays a crucial role in making vaping look aspirational, trendy, and even humorous.
The report significantly contains a set of policy recommendations and suggestions of immediate actions that can lead to arrest of this trend and save the future of children. Among the key recommendations is the need of disclaimers clearly specifying that Vaping, E-cigarettes and Heat-Not-Burn devices are prohibited by Indian Laws’ should be mandated on all forms of communication and advertising – even on private and personal posts that promotes vaping.
The digital adaptation of the traditional surrogate advertising model such as the use of youthful imagery, school references, hostel reels, and meme formats to promote or normalise vaping should be addressed through section 77 of the Juvenile Justice Act, 2015.The act criminalizes such advertising and violators face up to 7 years imprisonment and ₹1 lakh fine, says the report.
To de-prioritise glamour content that is boosted through engagement-focused algorithms, the group has recommended that all major platforms operating in India should be mandated to conduct independent audits of their content recommendation engines. Any metric found disproportionately boosting content that includes smoking/vaping must be flagged, reviewed, and algorithmically downgraded. Platforms should submit quarterly compliance reports to the Ministry of Electronics and IT (MeitY).
Also, a national mission modeled after campaigns like Pulse Polio or Swachh Bharat Abhiyan should be launched to create awareness across schools and educational institutions to explicitly inform people that vaping is banned in India, and equip them to identify illegal sales and misleading promotions.
“To spread awareness, we have issued comprehensive guidelines for schools, initiated capacity-building programmes for teachers, and are working closely with influencers and digital creators to speak up about the dangers of vaping. We’ve also launched an online reporting platform that empowers everyday citizens to flag violations related to the sale or promotion of these banned devices so that prompt action can be taken. I’d like to extend my heartfelt appreciation to Mothers Against Vaping for their unwavering commitment and advocacy on this critical issue”, says Dr Avinash Sunthlia – Deputy Additional Director General (DADG), Directorate General of Health Services, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.
Talking about immediate actions, the report suggests establishing robust coordination between cybercrime units, law enforcement agencies, and regulatory bodies to proactively monitor and identify violative digital content and actors. Launch immediate legal action under relevant provisions of the Prohibition of Electronic Cigarettes Act, 2019 (PECA) and other applicable laws.
