Bihar brings in new law banning liquor consumption

•  Bihar government came out with a new and more stringent liquor-ban law- ‘Bihar prohibition and excise act, 2016’.

Key provisions of the law:

• This is a new and more stringent liquor-ban law with provisions such as arrest of all adults in the family if anyone consumes or stores alcohol.
• It aims to ensure that the ban on sale and consumption of alcohol, including Indian-made foreign liquor (IMFL), continues in Bihar.
• Those flouting the ban face up to 10 years in jail, a fine of up to Rs 10 lakh and there is also a provision to confiscate the house or premises where liquor is stored or drunk.
• Though in a rare case, it also prescribes death penalty if people die after consuming hooch.
• Enforcement of the new law, calculated to impose prohibition in a holistic manner, would repeal the previous excise laws in the state.

Analysis:

• The alcohol issue in Bihar stemmed from the Nitish Kumar government's decision to liberalise the state's liquor policy in 2007 which helped shore up the funds. Big business arrived in the state, but the move was extremely unpopular in various areas. In 2013, the women in Rohtas district, led by Sunita Singh, started the 'Pragatisheel Mahila Sangh' to campaign against liquor shops in the state. Alcoholism was a significant problem in the region and even children would get addicted.
• Thousands of men end up in hospital with alcohol-related diseases. According to a status report by the World Health Organization (WHO), 6.2 per cent of all male deaths globally are alcohol-related. Families with alcoholic men suffer poverty and ill health because the men drink away the income. They also suffer physical and mental abuse
• One of the biggest rationales behind alcohol ban was that it played a role in violence against women
• But in contrary , total ban will lead to revenue losses in a poor state like Bihar and will give rise to black market and underground production activities.
• The ban on alcohol usually hurts the lowest strata of society the most. In 2015 in Mumbai over a hundred people were killed after consuming illegal hooch. In the last decade, over a thousand people have died due to hooch-related issues in West Bengal (156 people in 2011), Gujarat (136 people in 2009), Karnataka and Tamil Nadu (180 dead in 2008), Odisha ( 200 dead in 1992) and the worst Karnataka in 1981 when over 300 people died due to methyl alcohol poisoning.
• The Beverage Corporation was a good strategy by the Government. It created jobs, and revenue. The workers will lose their jobs, even though they are promised with remuneration.
• States that have banned alcohol have struggled to cope with bootlegging problems as prohibition merely drives the alcohol production business underground, making it impossible for authorities to regulate it for quality and authenticity. The free flow of liquor across state borders and crime syndicates is a common sight in “dry” Gujarat.
• Though, prohibition of alcohol is not a complete solution, but yes, to a certain extent, we can say that ban on alcohol can reduce alcohol consumption. Maybe such a step by the Government will reduce the problems arising due to alcohol consumption like health issues, deaths, car crashes, domestic violence and marriage problems.

By: Vishal