---
title: "How did smoking start in India?"  
description: "A brief explanation about the origin of smoking and tobacco"  
author: "Anjita D."  
published: 2023-11-22  
canonical: https://yourviews.mindstick.com/story/3318/how-did-smoking-start-in-india  
category: "education, history"  
tags: ["smoking", "marijuana", "tobacco", "facts", "general knowledge"]  
reading_time: 1 minute  

---

# How did smoking start in India?

![How did smoking start in India](https://yourviews.mindstick.com/stories/08353f63-01b1-4645-96ac-eafb3592c180/images/04ff9a57-7d26-43f4-8ab0-4a5cea3d3e91.jpeg) ![How did smoking start in India](https://yourviews.mindstick.com/stories/08353f63-01b1-4645-96ac-eafb3592c180/images/24549632-b95e-41e4-a104-86aa1a276289.jpeg) Smoking (marijuana) dates back around 1200 BC–1000 BC, as it was first mentioned in the Atharvaveda and has been documented since at least 2000 BC. ![How did smoking start in India](https://yourviews.mindstick.com/stories/08353f63-01b1-4645-96ac-eafb3592c180/images/f3661310-f8cf-471c-a02b-e1ed3ecf6ad4.jpeg) Later in the 16th-17th century, Portuguese traders introduced tobacco to India. ![How did smoking start in India](https://yourviews.mindstick.com/stories/08353f63-01b1-4645-96ac-eafb3592c180/images/fd9b83f1-ee33-41a0-97a0-86af9c06e937.jpeg) It quickly became popular among Indians by the 19th century, due to its affordability, resulting in it becoming a common practice. ![How did smoking start in India](https://yourviews.mindstick.com/stories/08353f63-01b1-4645-96ac-eafb3592c180/images/10a70b3c-619a-47fc-948d-965c36b2fe28.jpeg) Fast forward to today, smoking causes lung cancer, heart disease, and premature mortality, resulting in an estimated 1 million deaths each year. ![How did smoking start in India](https://yourviews.mindstick.com/stories/08353f63-01b1-4645-96ac-eafb3592c180/images/6877c9a8-9b49-44a4-b8f7-e4eea52e3ec4.jpeg) To reduce smoking rates, the Indian govt. promoted public awareness about the harms of smoking and prohibited smoking in public areas.

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