Alcoholism a grave issue; better ways to tackle it
Prime Minister Narendra Modi's endorsement of Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's prohibition policy, at an event marking the end of Guru Parv in Bihar, came as a surprise. Speaking on the occasion, the Prime Minister defined the Bihar Government’s liquor prohibition move “a courageous step” which can “save the coming generations” and act as an “inspiration for other States”. The Prime Minister's public acknowledgement has left many speculating on the development of a new bonhomie between both the leaders. But, perhaps, this was a gesture on the part of the Prime Minister to return Nitish Kumar’s favour of support to demonetisation since day one, which eventually punctured Opposition unity. Another probable reason could have been Gujarat's prohibition policy, which was supported by Prime Minister Modi for a good 12 years when he was that State’s Chief Minister. Yet another reason could be the social support among the vast sections, especially women and children, to the prohibition of liquor. However, there is enough material to indicate that across the board, banning of liquor does not work. In and all, about nine States tried to enforce prohibition and did not fare well. In the north-eastern State of Mizoram, 18 years of prohibition was revoked after there was a realisation that the ban led to the spread of bootlegging industry and also a fall in revenue. In Andhra Pradesh, prohibition was lifted within a matter of a few years after there were mass protests from various groups, ironically especially the women, because of the debilitating financial implications to the family, of the move.
In the case of Bihar, prohibition has been termed as an over-reach due to some provisions which were considered to be draconian. Under the new prohibition law, in case liquor is found stored in any household, all adult members of a family would be rounded up and, if found guilty, imprisoned for a minimum of 10 years, extendable to a life term. The result of the stringent law was that it gave birth to smuggling business, people smuggled alcohol from bordering States such as Jharkhand, West Bengal and Uttar Pradesh. Clearly, prohibition is no solution to a serious problem. It has never effectively checked on this practice. It has additionally led to black marketing, widespread smuggling and sale of illicit and spurious liquor which is unsafe and has across the country led to the death of several hundreds of people. Prohibition deprives the State of an important source of revenue, and this can hardly be ignored, more so at a time when States are increasingly required to raise revenues on their own and not depend on Central dole. In the case of Tamil Nadu, in 2015-1016, about Rs 3,000 crore, or about a quarter of the total revenue, came from taxes on the sale of alcohol.
Certainly, if indeed prohibition can transform society, there can be other and better means to generate revenue. But this is not the case. More than anything else, we need a practical solution to what is admittedly a problem in some ways. The law and order machinery must be strengthened, outlets selling alcohol illegally must be cracked down upon, and the Government must come up with mass awareness campaigns about the detrimental effects of alcoholism.