Indian gov't announces ban on e-cigarettes

NEW DELHI, Sept. 18 (Xinhua) -- India's Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Wednesday that the Union Cabinet has given the approval to ban e-cigarettes from the country with immediate effect.

"It means the production, manufacturing, import or export, transport, sale, distribution, storage and advertising related to e-cigarettes are banned," the minister said at a press conference in New Delhi.

The decision to prohibit e-cigarettes is taken to help protect the population, especially the youth and children, from the risk of addiction through e-cigarettes.