Bad news for e-cigarette users

The budget for the upcoming fiscal year is likely to bring bad news for e-cigarette users. The government plans to hike duties on the import of the product and its refill packs. The finance minister has proposed raising customs duties on both e-cigarettes and refill packs to 25% from the existing 10%. He also proposed the imposition of a new 100% supplementary duty on these two items. According to the minister, e-cigarettes are popular among young smokers from well-off families. The duty hike was made because e-cigarettes, like bidis and cigarettes, are hazardous to health. “The use of e-cigarettes is increasing day by day as it has become very popular among the young smokers from comparatively wealthy families,” Finance Minister AMA Muhith said in his budget speech on Thursday.