The women of the nondescript Nurpur Panjanhedi village in Kankhal, nearly 11 km south of Haridwar district headquarters, are now in the thick of an anti-booze movement with lakshmi of 45 years from the village taking over the lead. A night hardly passes when these women assisted by the local police do not swoop down on the locations where liquor is sold clandestinely. Besides, they say they would not allow liquor shops displaced by the landmark Supreme Court ruling to be relocated in the vicinity of their village.
The villagers said that in 10 days they have raided such suspected locations thrice. “Our targets are the houses from where liquor is sold clandestinely during the night hours. Of course, the local cops are helping us. We would see it that our village is free from the menace of boozing that is vitiating our families as well as our collective life,” said a village woman.
Hari krishan lal aged around 27 is an unemployed youth from Jamalpur Kalan area of Panjenhedi village. He admits while talking to this correspondent that he is an alcoholic and has not been able to quit boozing despite spending a few months at a rehabilitation centre in Pune. “The withdrawal symptoms proved too strong for me. During my rehabilitation course, I had to spend months in seclusion. Once I returned the temptation overpowered me,” he said. His mother Kamla who ekes her living through sewing clothes said that the same dreaded habit which affected her husband’s health is now doing the same to her son.
Another villager Preeti Chauhan said that their movement would gain momentum every passing day. “I have my experiences of how boozing ruins a family. Every time my son returns drunk he indulges in domestic violence. I will not allow others villagers to suffer as I am doing,” she affirmed.
The villagers said that the gram sabha of Panjenhedi had two liquor shops earlier, but they were shut down a few months ago following stirs by the local women.
From Harsivala to Jamalpur Kalan to Sarai to Bhadarpur Jatt, the village women are resolved to resist any move to shift the now-displaced liquor shops to their villages. They are being found camping at the sites chosen for relocation and staging demonstrations with sticks in their hands daily.
“A section of the men from the village are supporting our cause as they know how boozing coupled with gambling is wreaking havoc on the village life,” says Saroj Chauhan from Bahadurpur Jatt village.
Notably, around four years ago, pressured by the relentless movement by the village women, Haridwar district administration had shifted over 10 liquor vends from Shivalik Nagar, Narsen, laksar and Haridwar.