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A popular student hangout spot in Kathmandu, XYZ restaurant, is seeing an increase in the number of young customers, who frequent the place to smoke hookah. Among them is Subhasish (name changed), 24, a college student who visits the restaurant regularly to enjoy the ambiance and the company of his friend Ananta (name changed), 25, while smoking hookah. For Subhasish and Ananta, smoking hookah is a way to escape from the stress and pressures of college life. They find the experience calming and relaxing, and enjoy the flavors and aromas of different tobacco blends at the restaurant. Over time, Subhasish and his companion find themselves increasingly dependent on hookah to cope with stress and anxiety, and the habit begins to take a toll on their physical health. They experience respiratory problems and coughing, and are unable to quit even when they try. This is not just the story of the two but of a huge number of youths who have become addicted to tobacco products like hookah. What is a matter of serious concern for the youths, parents and law enforcement is that Nepal’s Tobacco Products (Control and Regulatory) Act (2011) has no provision on controlling the import, production and distribution of such products. A team from AMN’s No Tobacco Campaign interviewed some of the regular consumers and visitors of the XYZ restaurant, including students, teachers and corporate to get their perspectives on “hookah, vape and/or e –cigarettes”. Cool or poisonous? Romit (name changed), 23, says he enjoys vaping because his friends also consider it cool and trendy. “Everyone is doing it, so I wanted to give it a try,” he said. “I like different flavors and the fact that it doesn’t smell like cigarettes.” Shreya (name changed), 22, says she too enjoys hookah with friends because it is “a social activity”. “It’s something we can do together and try new flavors,” she said, describing it as a ‘fun thing to do.’ However, not all customers agreed with the two. Sudarshan (name changed), 26, was concerned about the potential health risks associated with hookah, vapes, and e-cigarettes. “I’ve heard that they can cause lung problems and other health issues,” he said. “I’m not sure it’s worth the risk.” Some customers appeared quite cautious about the addictive nature of these products, pointing that they had seen people ‘who can’t go a day without vaping’. Like them, an increasing number of people, including health experts, aware of health risks that these products pose, are raising awareness on the issue. The experts warn that products like e-cigarettes contain harmful chemicals and are addictive. Smoking hookah has been associated with increased risk of lung cancer, heart diseases and other health problems. Findings of a new research from the Nepal Development Research Institute (NDRI) also suggest that increase in hookah use may be behind a growing number of young people in Nepal who are using tobacco products—up from 11.4 percent of 15 to 24-year-olds in 2013 to over 15 percent in 2019. That in turn explains the growing epidemic of smoking-related deaths in Nepal. One in five deaths in the country is attributed to tobacco. Worryingly, the youths account for an increasing number of deaths, including the use of tobacco products, including hookah.   Don’t go after flavors Hookah is taxed at a much lower rate than cigarettes, meaning companies are incentivized to invest in promoting it and young people find it more affordable. It does not have to carry visible health warnings on its packaging, meaning many young people are under the mistaken impression that it won’t harm them. And the tobacco firms, of course, know all this. That’s why hookah is marketed as fun, colorful, and cool in a way that’s just not possible with the much more familiar danger of cigarettes. Young people are tempted by flavors, including watermelon, tropical fruit, caramel, chocolate, vanilla, and strawberry. The way we handle hookah in this country is killing young people. The international evidence is clear that hookah can have serious and negative health impacts. In hookah smoke, at least 82 harmful substances and carcinogens have been found. Smoking tobacco with a water pipe for an hour emits the same amount of smoke as 100–200 cigarettes. Studies have shown that users can expose themselves to up to 1.7 times as much nicotine and up to nine times as much carbon monoxide in a normal hookah session as they would in a single cigarette. Hookah smokers are 2.2 times more likely than non-smokers to experience long-term cardiovascular consequences, and it has been shown that hookah smokers are more likely than non-smokers to develop oesophageal cancer. Smoking a hookah is associated with many of the same harmful health effects as smoking cigarettes, including heart disease, lung, bladder, and oral malignancies.   Time for urgent action It’s time to end this hookah epidemic and address the wider problem of increasing tobacco use in Nepal, particularly among the youths. NDRI, along with the Nepal Cancer Relief Society, are urging the government to take urgent action to protect the health of Nepal’s youth. They are asking the government to ensure that hookah products are treated with the same level of severity as other tobacco products through measures like these:

• Extending existing tobacco control regulations to explicitly apply to hookah. For example, requiring that hookah products carry health warnings and banning sales to minors.
• Introducing regulations that limit marketing tactics, which specifically target young people.
• Increasing tax on hookah products to help make hookah products less affordable to youth.

The upcoming budget is a perfect opportunity for the government to take a first step toward better protecting young people from the harms of tobacco. By increasing tobacco tax, the government can reduce the affordability of these dangerous products, and at the same time generate much-needed revenue. It is the responsibility of the government to protect our young from all forms of tobacco, including new products such as hookah. As the Constitution of Nepal, 2072 has stipulated the right to health as a fundamental right, federal, state and local governments should guarantee a healthier life for all the citizens. A nation can develop only if it has healthy citizens.

Bodies of three people who died in an avalanche that occurred at Bolin in Byas Rural Municipality of Darchula are being brought to Khalanga, district headquarters, via Indian roads. Since there is no road facility to Nepal, the bodies are being brought to Darchula by using Indian roads, Chief District Officer Kiran Joshi said. Armed Police Force DSP Ishwori Dutta Bhatta said that the bodies of Kamala Kunwar (38), Prabin Kunwar (18) of Duhun Rural Municipality, Darchula and Chimi Somo of Joyoral Rural Municipality, Doti, who lost their lives on Tuesday’s avalanche, are being sent to the district headquarters. “It is raining continuously. It is not possible to send the bodies to Khalanga by using our own land,” he said. Two persons are still missing in the avalanche. The District Police Office, Darchula identified the missing persons as Nakni Dolma Thapa (45) and Ishwori Thapa (28) of Joyaral, Doti. A team of Nepal Police and Armed Police Force are searching for them.  

A total of 220 rhinos died in Chitwan National Park (CNP) and vicinity in eight years. The CNP said that among the casualties, 64 rhinos died of aging and falling off cliffs; and 19 died in morass and floods. Information officer at CNP, Ganesh Prasad Tiwari, said that 51 pachyderms died while fighting each other. Similarly, 20 rhinos were killed in tiger attacks, nine in poaching, eight in electric shock, and 12 of illness. Three pachyderms died being trapped in a trench, five by consuming toxic things, while the reason behind the death of 29 rhinos is not ascertained yet. Tiwari further said that in the last eight years, 100 male and 76 female rhinos died, while the number of rhinos with unidentified sex stood at 44 in this period. Comparatively, since fiscal year-2072/73, the highest number of deaths, 43, was recorded in fiscal year-2075/76. Similarly, 14 rhinoceroses- lowest in eight years- died in fiscal year-2072/73. The CNP has been running various programs to manage grazing land and conserve water for rhinos.

Parliament member Top Bahadur Rayamajhi said that he has no involvement in the case of fake Bhutanese refugees. Rayamajhi made it clear that he has no involvement in the case of fake Bhutanese refugees after police issued an arrest warrant against him. Talking briefly with journalists in Arghakhanchi on Wednesday, Rayamajhi said, “I have no involvement in this case.” The former energy minister, however, said that he has been taking initiatives to resolve the long-term problem of Bhutanese refugees. The Kathmandu District Court today issued an arrest warrant against former minister Rayamajhi. He was elected as a member of the House of Representatives from Arghakhanchi in the November 20 elections. An arrest warrant was also issued against his son Sandeep. SSP Dan Bahadur Karki, Chief at the District Police Range, Kathmandu, said that arrest warrants were issued against Rayamajhi and his son in the case of fake Bhutanese refugees. Earlier this afternoon, police arrested Tek Narayan Pandey, Secretary at the Vice President’s Office, for his alleged involvement in the same case. On Tuesday, police had apprehended Indrajit Rai, security advisor of former Home Minister Ram Bahadur Thapa. An arrest warrant has also been issued against his son Niraj. But he is on the run. Sita Ram Rijal, spokesperson at the District Police Range, Kathmandu, said that two complaints have been filed against Rayamajhi saying that he was involved in sending people to the United States making them refugees. Based on the complaints, seven people have been arrested so far. Rayamajhi’s aide Sanu Bhandari, Keshav Dulal, former personal secretary of Nepali Congress leader Sujata Koirala, Sagar Thulung, Tanaka Gurung and Sandesh Sharma Pokharel have already been arrested.