Even though the government has banned the sale of electronic cigarettes (Vape), its uninterrupted trading in the market has not been stopped. What is strange is that the Ministry of Health has banned the import of vape, but the Ministry of Finance and Commerce does not seem to be aware of this matter.

Despite the ban, there seems to be an uninterrupted trading of vape in the market . There is no clarity in the answer to the question of whether the trade and use of goods banned from import is legal or illegal. Instead, a series of cases of illegal vape seizures are coming to the surface. 

After the National Information, Health and Communication Center of the Ministry of Health and Population sent a letter to the customs departments by 'coding' the provisions mentioned in the Tobacco Control and Regulation Guideline-2071, the legal import of vape has been stopped . But illegal import is not only flourishing internally, it is suspected that gold smuggling has started to be involved in the illegal business . Traders in the border area say that since the customs revenue rate is fixed at almost 100 percent of the value, the percentage of profit when selling smuggled vape is higher than that of gold. 

The opinions of government officials are divided on whether vape should be banned or not. Officials of revenue investigation say that the illegal import of vape is not only for Nepali but also for the Indian market and they say that the network of international illegal traders is active in it. 

• After the vape owner is not found, charge the vehicle owner

Is it reasonable to stop the importation of vape based on health guidelines only? Is import of tobacco and nicotine products like vape permitted/not? Even the officials of the Ministry of Finance have not answered such questions. According to section 3 of Export Import (Control) Act 2013, the authority to prohibit or control export import has been given to the Ministry of Industry and Commerce. According to the Act, the Ministry can open or close the import/export of any goods by publishing a notice in the gazette . But the Ministry of Commerce has not made any decision on VEP. 

Commerce and Supply Secretary Gobind Bahadur Karki said that he has no official information about the ban on vape import. The relevant ministry may have issued a circular in terms of items that affect vape health, it cannot be said otherwise. But the Ministry of Commerce has not taken any decision to stop the import of vape," Secretary Karki told Kantipur.

The Information Center of the Ministry of Health wrote a letter to the Customs Department on May 17 and asked them to ban the import of vape. It is stated in the Health Directive-2071, "Nobody shall be allowed to produce, import, sell, distribute, consume and advertise electric cigarettes in public places and public transport and through the media." "Using vape can lead to long-term lung problems, which are called 'evali'," she said.

The Ministry of Health had written to all the relevant agencies after more than four years after the regular importation of vape started. The circular was sent to the Ministry of Finance, Department of Customs, Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Supply, Department of Commerce and Supply and Consumer Protection. But the ministries and departments that received the letter are reluctant to give a clear answer. 

Government officials do not seem to agree on whether or not a ban on vape is necessary. One of them argues that the ban on vape is unnecessary because it brings in a lot of revenue, while the other says that if there is a ban on vape, it is unclear how to regulate its use. Therefore, it does not seem that the head of any office of the Ministry of Finance or any agency issued a written circular saying that VEP should be closed or opened.

The customs department is not passing the inspection of vape based on the circular of the Ministry of Health.  Mahesh Bhattarai, director general of the customs department, said that based on the letter from the health ministry, the VEP did not pass the inspection. He admitted that there was 'confusion' in some cases due to the lack of interaction between the ministries and departments. He is of the opinion that the ministry and related agencies should formalize the matter of banning imports by using the powers they have. 

In the current financial year, the customs duty on the import of vape has been made almost 100 percent. After the 100 percent tax increase and the decision to ban imports, the events show that the smuggling has increased dramatically. 

Before the import of vape was stopped, vape worth 303 million 38 million worth was imported from Tatopani in the last financial year . Tatopani Customs collected only 194.3 million revenue from VEP. Similarly, it seems that vape worth about 60 million was imported from Rasuwa Customs in the last financial year. Rasuwa Customs Chief Tulsi Prasad Bhattarai informed that 38.1 million 17 thousand revenue has been collected from the import of this price.

market chaos

If the import of vape is banned, how is the sale and distribution of vape possible in the market? The customs officials don't want to answer it . But it is easy to understand that vape is being supplied through smuggling. 
The recent developments of vape seizures also confirm this . Last Thursday, armed and Nepal Police recovered the vape that was smuggled from Tatopani crossing on Arani highway. The police have recovered 855 pieces of vape that the driver had hidden in the container and handed it over to the Revenue Investigation Department. 

Because the amount of profit is high when selling vape, it seems that not only in recent years, but also a cartoon vape is brought illegally. Last December, only 86,000 pieces of vape were seized from a warehouse in Imadol. Now the Revenue Investigation Department has started a case in this incident . Two people were released from custody after collecting the 200 million bond demanded by the revenue. 

Last December, the police seized 19,000 pieces of vape that had entered through the Corolla border. The revenue investigation has filed a case in the high court in the case of theft. A case was filed against two people with a claim of 46.66 million 12 thousand bigo and 9.32 million 24 thousand, including a fine according to the bigo.

Last July, 450 vapes were seized from the main gate of Birganj customs to be taken to India. Last July, 76 cartons i.e. 1,502 vape were seized from the room of an Indian citizen living in Birganj. Last December, Revenue Investigation Office Butwal seized 13 cartoon vape . Two people were detained along with the vehicle that was going to be taken to India through Nepalgunj. 

These examples are enough to explain that vape is coming to the Nepali market. So, is the illegally imported vape limited only to the Nepali market? A senior police official said, "A large part of illegally imported vape reaches the Indian market." Because the transportation of vape is banned in India too.'

Amidst the existing ambiguity among the government agencies about vape, vape worth crores worth of smuggled goods has now been piled up in the Revenue Investigation Department . The revenue department seems to be in a dilemma whether to destroy the seized vape or to auction it.  Chandi Prasad Ghimire, director general of

department, says that he will do whatever the authorized body directs. "If it is decided that it is prohibited and cannot be auctioned, we will do the same," he said. Because prohibited items cannot be auctioned.'
Kumar Prasad Dahal, Director General of Commercial Supply and Consumer Protection Department, says that since the Ministry of Health has banned the import of vape, it should be considered a restricted item. "If it is a policy matter, the higher body will answer, after banning the import, the commerce department should consider vape as banned," Dahal said. 

At this time, more than 200 cartons seized by Tatopani Customs are stored in the vape warehouse. Tatopani Chief Customs Officer Kamal Kumar Bhattarai said that they have asked the department about how to manage it. It has been taken under control and kept in the warehouse. Not sure what to do, we have sought guidance from the higher authorities, but have not received an answer, he said.

How harmful is vape?

An electronic cigarette (e-cigarette) or vape is a device that gives the experience of smoking a cigarette . It consists of a heater (atomizer), a battery and a tank-like container. It produces steam instead of smoke . That's why using e-cigarettes is called 'vaping'. 

The heater heats a liquid called 'E-Liquid' and makes a vapor . According to various studies, this vapor often contains nicotine and flavoring substances. Nicotine is a highly addictive substance found in cigarettes and other tobacco products. It contains propylene glycol and glycerin, which is used to make steam . 
The amount of 'vape' growing in young people

How much vape contains small amounts of cancer-causing (carcinogenic) chemicals such as acetaldehyde and formaldehyde. Chemicals such as acrolein, diacetyl and diethylene glycol are chemicals that cause lung disease and have serious effects. Vape also contains THC, which is found in marijuana, which makes it addictive.