MAV Marks Children’s Day with Anti-Vaping Awareness Drive at Delhi School
To celebrate Children’s Day at Harcourt Butler Senior Secondary School, Mothers Against Vaping (MAV) launched an awareness campaign about the increase in electronic cigarette and nicotine product use amongst school-aged children. The event was conducted under MAV’s “Our Future, Our Fight” initiative and attracted over 500 students from grades 8-12 with a focus on health, making informed decisions about nicotine use, and the dangers of early nicotine exposure.
The event opened with a Nukkad Natak by National School of Drama artists, utilizing humor and storytelling to illustrate how “harmless puffs” can lead to dependence. Students also took part in poster-making, fact-card activities, a march-past and guided discussions on how these products work and why they are risky.
Pulmonary specialist Dr. Harish Bhatia addressed the health impact of vaping, warning that nicotine affects memory, attention and emotional regulation. “Nicotine interferes with brain development,” he told students.
Dr. Atul Goel, Chief Guest and former Director General of Health Services, used the analogy of “modern poison” to describe vaping and electronic cigarettes, further stating that companies use flavours and social media trends to lure in young consumers. Shri Jitendramani Tripathi, DCP, the Guest of Honour, encouraged the students to be aware of the profit motives inherent in today’s drug corporations and to resist these companies’ efforts to manipulate their youth with style and marketing tactics.
A highlight of the day was the Fact Cards activity, where students learned that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had called e-cigarettes a “new form of intoxication” in his 2019 Mann Ki Baat address. This fact surprised many of the students.
The programme ended with a collective pledge against vaping.
“Awareness begins in schools,” said Principal Shri Sameer Kumar Gangarh. “When education, creativity and enforcement come together, we create real change.”
