The state government has said that the District Magistrates and the SSPs/ SPs cannot be held accountable for the manufacture, sale of spurious liquor and the related deaths in the state.
The government said that action has been taken against Sub -Divisional Magistrate, Circle Officer and Station Officers after the recent hooch tragedy in Etah where 44 persons died after consuming spurious liquor.
The question on the hooch tragedy was tabled by Manish Asijaa of the BJP who claimed that thenefarious business was not possible without patronage from the police and local politicians. The legislator said that without holding top officials of district administration responsible for manufacture and sale of hooch, it’s difficult to curb the menace. He also criticised the archaic United Province Excise Act of 1910 terming it as a toothless legislation as the guilty escape by depositing a small amount of fine for illegally distilling liquor.
Replying to this, Mminister of state for Excise Ram Karan Arya said that regular enforcement drives are launched by the Excise department for preventing manufacture, sale and consumption of illegally distilled liquor in the state. He said that in the current fiscal, over 3 lakh raids were conducted to prevent illegal brewing and 9,000 persons were jailed.
The minister said that after the hooch tragedy in Etah, Deputy Excise Commissioner, District Excise Officer, SDM, Circle Officer and a Station Officer were suspended. He assured that a proposal to amend the United Province Excise Act of 1910 and making it more stringent is under the consideration of the state government.
The BJP member said that it was beyond the powers of District Excise Officer to prevent manufacture of spurious brew and until the DM and the SP were not directly held accountable, it would be impossible to curb the menace.
In reply to another question, the Minister of state for Power said that round the clock power supply will be ensured in the state by 2019. The minister said that the government was committed to providing power to all and from October 2016, the rural areas would get at least 16 hours power.
However, Opposition members slammed the government for not providing adequate power in small towns and rural areas. Dharampal Singh of the BSP said that in Agra, which is a load-shedding free zone as per orders of Supreme Court, witnesses nearly seven to eight hours of power cut every day. BJP leader Suresh Kumar Khanna alleged that in Shahjahanpur too, there is power cut every night for four hours thereby giving the people sleepless nights.