Booze police crack a joke

From now on, you can buy just two bottles of alcohol per week, mandates state excise department, in an absurd bid to get people to drink less

From now on, you can buy just two bottles of alcohol per week, mandates state excise department, in an absurd bid to get people to drink less

In a recent notification issued by the excise department, a copy of which is with this paper, nobody can buy more than two bottles of alcohol per week.

The sizes of the bottles vary depending on the drink (see box).

The state has imposed this decision, effective from December 1 by putting in place a flying squad of approximately 150 excise officers who watch over buyers at wine shops across the city.

And now for some figures. An astounding 56 lakh people drink in this city roughly 60 per cent of theu00a0 total population.

There are 550 shops selling alcohol in Mumbai, popularly called wine shops. This means, each excise officer has to monitor 37,333 people. Absurd? "Yes, and impossible too," said an excise department officer on anonymity.



Added Freddy Ginwala, president of Maharashtra Wine Merchant Association (MWMA), "This is illogical.

The move made by the excise department will bring in more corrupt practices. How will you find out whether a person has bought liquor once or twice or more?

There is no photo identification nor will there be any paperwork involved." Ginwala will soon be meeting the excise commissioner to discuss the matter.

Illegal Trade

The decision was apparently taken to reduce illegal trade practices that take place in the city.

An excise source explained that with, "It's about clamping down on those people who buy more than required for their personal consumption and then sell it an inflated price when the need arises during dry days or at night when wine shops have closed for the day.

Anybody caught flouting the rule can be imprisoned and/or has to pay a fine of Rs 500 to Rs 10,000 depending on the stock found on him."

DAARU KHATAM? The excise department's notification on two bottles of alcohol per week can hamper the New Year revellers.

Sources from the excise department added that the notification had come about as a result of activist Anna Hazare's criticism of the Maharashtra government's decision to provide beer bar licences at cheaper rates.

"Hazare feared that this would lead to a rise in alcoholism and disturb family life, after which the department decided to take action," said the source.

Ginwala added, "When the government issues such notices they normally give us a month's notice to inform the public. But this notification (see box) was not published earlier. Why?"

'Sale may go down'

Sanjeev Sethi, owner of Variety Wine Merchants at Juhu, fears that the sale of liquor may go down drastically. "We will lose business.


The new directive is irrational," said Sethi. Joint Secretary to government (excise) department, P T Goud, who issued the notification, said, "I don't know about it.

I am in Nagpur." Mumbai's tipplers say they just don't understand the logic. "The government should first look at how many people actually hold a permit.

I am sure most of them will be flouting the rule. When the basics are not in place, how can the excise department think of issuing such directives?" asked Sajan Abraham, a PR executive.

Abraham grumbled that the new order would affect his New Year celebrations.

Preeti Das, a hotel management student, said, "It's just foolish. Mumbai is a metro, you just cannot restrict people from drinking.

If one needs to drink they can go to a bar and drink. Earlier it was drunken driving and now this."

12
Number of units (bottles) of alcohol that could be bought per week before the notification came into place

Rs 100
Cost for a drinking permit for a year and Rs 1000 for lifetime.

May 1, 1960
When prohibition was instituted in Gujarat

Unit measure
1 unit = 750 ml of hard liquor/ 1500 ml of wine / 2600 ml of beer

What Does The Notification Say

The notification says: in the rule of 70-D of the Bombay Foreign Liquor Rules 1953 in sub rule (6), for the words 'Twelve "Units" the words 'two units per week' shall be substituted. Why Prohibition Doesn't Work? The Bombay Prohibition Act 1949 which governed the erstwhile Bombay State (consisting of the present Maharashtra and Gujarat) is still in force in both states. However, while other Indian states have a relaxed view towards prohibition, Gujarat is quite strict about enforcing it, making it the only state in the country to do so. While this results in loss of revenue for the state, successive governments have stuck to the belief that lost revenue is no reason to surrender Gandhian virtues. Despite that, however, many deaths have occurred in Gujarat to consumption of spurious liquor, with one scandal occurring even in July this year. The policy is widely believed to have not been implemented effectively, resulting in alcohol being available freely in the black market, albeit at much higher prices. It has also led to an illicit liquor racket in the state, leading to a debate on whether the policy should be relaxed. You need to have a medical certificate to drink in Gujarat.