It is Safe Liquor not Cheap Liquor : Vanam Jwala Narasimha Rao

It is Safe Liquor not Cheap Liquor

Vanam Jwala Narasimha Rao

Safety, not cost, focus of liquor policy

Metro India News paper (02-09-2015)

The Telangana liquor policy as articulated by Chief Minister K. Chandrashekhar Rao, basically aims at putting in to operation drastic and stringent provisions to drive out illicitly distilled country liquor popularly known as “Gudumba” from the State, no matter the amount of loss to state exchequer. As an alternate to Gudumba, the cheap, spurious liquor made in large parts of the state, a decision to introduce, legally distilled liquor at affordable price, and comparatively safer has been taken to discourage people from consuming illicit liquor. This liquor will be manufactured under Government’s supervision and distributed through its channels. This is in fact the Extra Neutral Alcohol or ENA that is a highly distilled without any impurities which is used in the production of alcoholic beverages such as Whisky, Vodka, Gin and alcoholic fruit beverages. This safer and affordable liquor which is subsidized is not the same as that of Arrack that was sold in sachets prior to partial prohibition imposed in 1993 in the united Andhra Pradesh. In fact that was the beginning of large scale illicit distillation and consumption in the state which continued even after formation of Telangana.

In addition to introducing and selling legitimate liquor the Government has also declared a war against the Gudumba makers. Once the sale of legal liquor starts, all the stakeholders involved in Gudumba, namely, manufacturer, transporter, seller and consumer will be subjected to severe punishment including invoking Preventive Detention (PD) Act. The network will be crushed at any cost.   

Whenever CM touched the subject of Gudumba he becomes emotional and narrates his experiences during his visits to slums in the districts, referring to the women narrating hardships they had undergone due to their men folk consuming Gudumba and in the process how their families are being ruined. Implementing various welfare schemes according to CM has no meaning when the otherwise hard earned money of a poor daily wage worker is spent on a health hazardous drink.

There has been unethical criticism from some corners that instead of prohibiting Gudumba the government has resorted to bring in its place what is being referred as cheap liquor. Some individuals have even demanded to impose total prohibition unmindful of its failures. Major part of such adverse comments is coming from people with political and selfish motives. It is also no wonder if a majority of them consume privately foreign brands of liquor arranged by their kith and kin non-resident Indians working abroad. For them consumption of Scotch Whiskey is safer than consuming Indian Made Foreign Liquor! What it is to them, consuming Scotch in place of IMFL is to an ordinary low earned wage worker, consuming affordable, legally distilled liquor in place of illicitly distilled Gudumba. If consuming Scotch is elevation of social status of rich people, then it also amounts to elevation of social status of poor people who consume affordably priced safe liquor in place of Gudumba.

Is it so simple to impose prohibition either total or partially limited to illicit liquor? Is there any country in the world or any state in India that can boast of successfully implementing total prohibition? The earliest records of prohibition of alcohol date to the Xia Dynasty in China but was lifted later. The first half of the 20th century saw periods of prohibition of alcoholic beverages in several countries but almost all of them have subsequently withdrawn. Prohibition which lasted from 1920 to 1933 in USA described as a massive social experiment also failed and became a lesson for many who talk of prohibition unmindful of analysing the issues involved.

In India alcohol is a state subject and individual states can impose prohibition, but currently most states do not have prohibition and even in those one or two states illicit brewing is rampant. United Andhra Pradesh imposed total Prohibition under the Chief Ministership of N. T. Rama Rao but was thereafter lifted by Chandrababu Naidu Government. Election days and certain National Holidays such as Gandhi Jayanthi, Independence Day and Republic Day are meant to be dry days in India, when liquor sale is not permitted but seldom this is observed in its letter and spirit as many liquor shops sell from back doors and often priced higher than normal days. Predictably, smuggling and illicit sale of alcohol are very common.  

Total or partial Prohibition has its own bad effects. It creates disrespect for the law. Prohibition goes beyond the bounds of reason in that it attempts to control an individual’s appetite by legislation and makes crimes out of things that are not crimes according to Abraham Lincoln once President of America. If everyone practically breaks the law, as it normally happens during prohibition it is disrespected. Prohibition erodes respect for religion. It increases alcohol consumption and immorality, creates organized crime like transporting liquor, indulging in violence, murder, and theft and causes massive political corruption.

Prohibition permanently corrupts law enforcement, the court system, and politics. Prohibition overburdens police, courts, and the penal system. It harms people financially, emotionally and morally. It causes physical harm. It even changes the drinking habits for the worse. Instead of going out for a drink, people drink mostly at home and in the process drink more. Prohibition is phenomenally expensive as was experienced when it was in force in the then AP.

The main objective of liquor policy shall be ensuring the wellbeing of members of society by maximizing benefits and minimizing potential for harm that may be associated with drinking. To be effective and be more practical than ideal, liquor policies should rely on creating a balance between the rights of individuals and those of society. Such balance can be created in a number of different ways. One such way is providing an alternate to illicitly distilled health hazardous liquor and making available legally distilled safer liquor at affordable price. 

Over recent years there has been growing recognition that not all people drink alike, and not all who do experience the same harms and benefits from their drinking. Some are teetotallers, who, for religious, health, or other reasons abstain from alcohol. Many are moderate drinkers, who enjoy the occasional drink with a meal, at a social gathering, or as a means of relaxation. Still others cannot control their drinking or drink often, excessively, and to intoxication. It should be acknowledged that for most people, moderate drinking is a source of pleasure. There is also evidence suggesting that for some groups of individuals drinking may contribute to overall health. These two factors together have contributed to a gradual shift in how liquor policies are viewed around the world.

Ultimately prohibition or no-prohibition, it is the responsibility of Government to frame the laws in accordance with the wishes of people and no law can be successfully implemented without people’s broad based consent and the present liquor policy of Telangana Government is in tune with this. End