State cracks down on desi daru

Police and excise departments have received instructions from the state government to control the flow of desi daru (cheap liquor) into Telangana, from across the border.

The state government had made a futile attempt to introduce cheap liquor brands but withdrawn following strong protest from women and Opposition parties.

District police is trying to control the desi daru trade by forming special police teams and deploying them on the borders shared with the Maharashtra.  

Police officials from Adilabad asked their counterparts from bordering Maharashtra to stop desi daru from entering the district. Present at the meeting were officials from Nanded, Yavathmal, Gadchiroli and Chandrapur districts of Maharashtra.

It was found that women play an active role in transporting the dessi daru illegally to Adilabad from bordering Maharashtra.  

Adilabad police have now deployed special police teams including a woman constable at identified points in Sirpur (T), Adilabad, Boath, Asifabad, Mudhole and Chennur Assembly constituencies, which shared borders with Maharashtra.

The state government is of the opinion that desi daru is eating into what the state exchequer gets though liquor sales. There is a good smuggling network in the desi daru spanning the Maharashtra and Telangana border.

A police officer said that the rural masses prefer desi daru of Maharashtra as it is strong when compared to state government supplied liquor being sold in Telangana.

The cost of the desi daru is also less. He said 90 ML desi daru is sold for Rs 17 in Maharashstra while the same will be selling to the liquor regulars for Rs 30 after illegally transporting it to Adilabad. 

prohibition hits habitual drinkers

Prohibition on liquor consumption and its sales in few villages has shown its impact on habitual drinkers while other people are at peace in the Adilabad district of Telangana.

Stopping consumption of liquor all of sudden by habituated drinkers as part of the prohibition drive caused health problems in many of them.

As many as 100 habituated drinkers fell sick as they had stopped consuming liquor obeying to the oath they had taken boycotting the consumption of liquor and its sales in Kamole village in Bhainsa mandal.

Villagers imposed prohibition on liquor consumption and sales in many villages across the district in the recent past just after the state governments’ move to introduce cheap liquor and also during the Grama Jyoti programme. Villagers imposed prohibition ion liquor consumption and its sales in Kamole, Mategoan and Kamsara grampanchyats in Bhainsa mandal recently. 

The sick persons were shifted to Bhainsa where they were undergoing treatment.

The habitual drinkers who stopped drinking complained of various symptoms   and started behaved differently. What initially was noticed in 20 drinkers soon increased to nearly 100.

However, the villagers of Kamole have implementing the prohibition on liquor consumption and sales in their village despite the large number of habitual drinkers falling sick.

Bhainsa Area hospital superintendent Dr Kashinath said, these symptoms were common in those addicted to liquor as the nerve system is affected so blood pressure fluctuations and anxiety are not entirely unexpected.

He advised that habitual drinkers to consult doctors before giving up liquor consumption and eat nutritious food, fruits, vegetables and include B complex vitamins in the diet. A consultation with psychiatrist will also help.                       

Adilabad Excise Deputy Commissioner Shivraj also visited Kamole and appreciated the villagers for implementing the prohibition on liquor sales and promised to cancel the license of liquor shop in their village.      

Village development committee (VDC) members shifted the sick persons to Bhainsa government hospital and a medical camp was set up in the village to treat the habitual drinkers. Psychiatrists and a team of doctors visited the Kamole and gave counseled them.               

Such incidents were also reported from other villages where villagers took the decision boycotting the liquor in protest against the state governments effort’s to introduce cheap liquor which was withdrawn latter and also to control nuisance of the drinkers in the villages.

Women groups and youth associations had played a vital role in imposing prohibition on liquor and its implementation recently in Buggaram village in Neredigonda and Bambara in Wankidi and few villages in Talamadugu and Tamsi mandals.

VDC: Cheap liquor to prove costly

Children filling water into empty cheap liquor bottles

The ‘Telangana brand new cheap liquor’ to be launched soon will break the back bone of the powerful Village Development Committees (VDOs) which are dominant.

An alternative power body controlling village activities it collects lakhs of rupees from the contractors though open auctions for selling toddy and liquor in their respective villages in all the districts in the Telangana.

VDCs are losing their main income source, that is giving permission for selling liquor in their villages (belt shops) with the licenses being given to contractors by the state government to sell liquor to be introduced.

The VDC s have stopped open auctions, giving permission or selling liquor in their villages and also contractors are not coming forward  in the wake of licensed shops to be set up in the villages soon.

Leaders of VDCs feel that state government is snatching away their income sources to fulfill its coffer through license fee and introducing cheap liquor.

Generally, VDCs will take up works like temple constructions, village arch and purchase private land for schools and other institutions for public cause. In some places, VDCs look after agriculture activities and development activities and even some times they set the agenda for political parties and collects money from the contesting candidates in the elections to support them.

Yapalguda grampanchayat comprising 3,000 voters and four hamlets in the Adilabad mandal has not conducted open auction this year though previous contract ended one month ago in the wake of state government’s efforts to sell licensed cheap liquor to check illicit liquor in the villages.

Yapalguda VDC member Ashok said ‘they have lost nearly Rs 13 lakh income for one year as they had not conducted open auction for giving permission to  contractors to sell toddy and liquor in the village in the wake of state government’s decision to issue licenses to contractors to sell the state government sponsored cheap liquor.

Habitual drinker Dasari Rajanna of the Yapalguda opined that the villagers will get back the money they lose by stopping the open auction for selling toddy and liquor in the village through state government sponsored cheap liquor to be sold for just Rs 30 for 180 ml as it was very less when compared to liquor being sold now.