Spurred by Kerala move, Odisha anti-liquor body seeks total prohibition

Reported by Chinmaya Dehury

Bhubaneswar, Aug 25:

Encouraged by the Kerala government’s decision to impose total prohibition in the state from this year, the Milita Odisha Nisha Nibaran Aviyan has urged chief minister Naveen Patnaik to enforce the Orissa Prohibition Act, 1956 with necessary amendments in the state.

“We have brought this fact to your notice and have requested you to enforce the Orissa Prohibition Act with necessary amendments. The destruction of liquors shops and demand to shift them from the existing site is almost daily news. So, people in general want that the state government should clamp total prohibition,” said Padma Charan Nayak, convenor of the organisation in a letter to the chief minister.

Stating that the Act had got the President of India’s assent and two of its section were enforced so far, he said it is unfortunate that neither the other sections were enforced nor the rules framed for this propose.

“During the intervening fifty seven years, the sale of liquor through government administered shops and illegal outlets have multiplied more thana  thousand times. As a result, the entire society has been ruined and even adolescents have become the victims of liquor,” said Nayak in his letter.

Informing that the Kerala government, which is going to implement total prohibition from this year and complete it within a decade, will lose more than Rs 8000 crore annually, he said Odisha should not be left behind in this respect.

“Since the state government is going to get Rs 1630 crore more annually from mining royalty from this year from the Union government, the loss of excise revenue of about rupees 2000 crore will be easily compensated,” said the letter.