The Karnataka government has decided to enact a statewide ban on hookah smoking, “given the serious health risks associated with preserving “public health and youth,” according to Health Minister Dinesh Gundu Rao on Thursday.
In a post on X, the Minister stated, “Statewide hookah prohibition to safeguard public health and youth. Given the substantial health concerns linked with hookah smoking, we took quick action by prohibiting it throughout the state.”
“Given this concern, we have amended the Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act (COTPA) to prohibit hookah smoking in Karnataka. “Our government is working to make the environment safer and healthier for future generations,” he added. He also included the official state government order written in Kannada to the post.
Karnataka Govt. Issues Ban
The directive explains how hookah use in hotels, pubs, and restaurants has made food intake dangerous for the general people and may have a severe influence on their health.
As a result, in the interest of public health, the government has prohibited hookahs with and without tobacco or nicotine, flavored and unflavoured hookahs, sheesha and molasses hookahs, and all other hookah kinds, effective immediately.
Violations of the order may result in prosecution under various laws, including the Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act (COTPA), Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, Food Security and Standards Act, Karnataka Poisons (Possession and Sale) Rules, Indian Penal Code, and Fire Force Act.
Negative Effects of Hookah
The state health authorities defined hookah as a product ingested orally using a nozzle or pipe device in a sealed container. According to the report, hookah smoking transmits infectious illnesses such as herpes, TB, hepatitis, COVID-19, and others through the mouth.
The government cited research showing that 45 minutes of hookah smoking is comparable to smoking 100 cigarettes and is hazardous to one’s health. According to a World Health Organisation study, hookah is an addictive product that contains high levels of nicotine or tobacco, as well as molasses or flavoring ingredients containing the chemical carbon monoxide, which is extremely detrimental to one’s health.
Past Efforts to Ban
During the Karnataka Assembly’s winter session in 2023, Home Minister G Parameshwara said that the state will soon pass legislation to regulate hookah bars.
“The government will take stringent measures to prohibit hookah bars and the sale of other narcotics. The number of hookah bars in the state has grown over time,” the minister stated.
According to data presented before the Assembly, more than 100 charges against hookah bars have been filed in the previous four years, including 18 in 2020, 25 in 2021, 38 in 2022, and 25 in 2023.
In September 2023, the state health minister revealed that the Karnataka government was considering a ban on hookah bars and raising the legal smoking age from 18 to 21 years. In a similar action last year, the Haryana government prohibited supplying hookah to consumers in hotels, restaurants, bars, and business facilities throughout the state.
However, the Haryana prohibition does not extend to traditional hookahs used in rural regions. Hookah has already been prohibited in Maharashtra, Gujarat, and Punjab.
