About Us
Resource Centre for Tobacco Free India is an extension of VHAI’s motto of ‘Making Health and Development a Reality for the People of India’. It is a unique initiative to create a one-stop centre for all those seeking information on Tobacco Control in India
With a vision of making health and development a reality for the people of India, VHAI has over 45 years of experience in innovative models of sustainable health care particularly at the grassroots level.
What we do
Tobacco is one of the biggest global health concerns of this century with a significant contribution to the increasing burden of cancers, chronic diseases and associated mortality.
According to World Health Organisation (WHO), globally tobacco kills nearly 8 million people each year, of which around 1.2 million are non-smokers exposed to second-hand smoke.
Highlights
With E-cigarettes easily available online and at tobacco shops despite a ban, the Union Health Ministry issued a public notice for stricter implementation of the Act which prohibits manufacture, sale and advertisements of electronic cigarettes. The ministry notified that the “Offense of production, manufacture, import, export,transport, sale (including online sale), distribution, storage and advertisement of electronic cigarettes is cognizable and punishable as per the statutory provisions of the Act.”
The Union government, considering the harmful effects of electronic cigarettes and the alarming rise in its prevalence among youth enacted The Prohibition of Electronic Cigarettes (Production, Manufacture, Import, Export, Transport, Sale, Distribution, Storage and Advertisement) Act in 2019. Despite heavy penalties and imprisonment, e-cigarettes are widely available across a range of sources, including tobacco vendors, general stores, and online providers. To curb this, the Health Ministry has launched an online portal to facilitate reporting of violations under the Act. The portal, www.violation-
Parliament passed The Prohibition of Electronic Cigarettes Bill, 2019 which sought to prohibit the production, trade, transport, storage and advertisement of electronic cigarettes in the country. The Bill was earlier passed in Lok Sabha preceding its approval in Rajya Sabha on 2nd December, 2019.
Government of India bans the use of Tobacco products in public places to control the spread of COVID-19
The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India, as per an appeal made by the ICMR issued a letter to all the states and union territories to prohibit the use and spitting of tobacco in public places to prevent the spread of the COVID-19 infection in April 2020.
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Parliament passes The Prohibition of Electronic Cigarettes Bill, 2019
Parliament passed The Prohibition of Electronic Cigarettes Bill, 2019 which sought to prohibit the production, trade, transport, storage and advertisement of electronic cigarettes in the country. The Bill was earlier passed in Lok Sabha preceding its approval in Rajya Sabha on 2nd December, 2019.
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Tobacco products taxed at highest GST tax slab of 28%
All tobacco products (cigarettes, bidis and smokeless tobacco) are taxed at the rate of 28% GST. A compensation cess, which varies by product characteristics, applies to cigarettes and smokeless, but not on bidis.
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Tobacco is one of the biggest global health concerns of this century with a significant contribution to the increasing burden of cancers, chronic diseases and associated mortality. According to World Health Organisation (WHO), globally tobacco kills nearly 8 million people each year, of which around 1.2 million are non-smokers exposed to second-hand smoke.
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