Fulfilling a promise he had made to women before the assembly elections in the state, Nitish Kumar had on November 26, announced his plan to effect a liquor ban in the state next year.
Though Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar announced that alcohol will be banned in Bihar from April 1 next year, some reports say the ban could be limited only to country-made liquor.Fulfilling a promise he had made to women before the assembly elections in the state, Nitish Kumar had on November 26, announced his plan to effect a liquor ban in the state next year.However, a revenue deficit of Rs 5,500 crore that the ban is likely to bring on, may limit the ban to only country-made liquor, according to a report in a leading daily. “Ban on country-made liquor will be effected first, and IMFL, if it’s economically feasible, later,” a revenue and excise department official told the daily. The ban would be staggered at the very least, an official from an Indian-made foreign liquor (IMFL) company added.<!– Dna_Article_Middle_300x250_BTF –>However, AJ Mastan, Bihar Minister, Registration & Excise insisted that all kinds of alcohol would be banned. “The government feels that alcohol is death, will a government sell death?” he said. Bihar earns a revenue of Rs 400 crore annually from liquor sale.During his election campaign, women had requested Nitish Kumar at a function to stop the sale of liquor, saying it was ruining their homes and Kumar had promised to do so if he returned to power. The promise is believed to have paid rich dividends to Kumar in the elections as women voters outnumbered men by nearly 5% in all five phases of voting.The erstwhile ruling NDA in Bihar had implemented a liberal excise policy under the earlier government, headed by Kumar himself, due to which a large number of liquor shops had come up in the state. Also Read: Why Nitish Kumar’s plan to ban alcohol in Bihar is flawed
More:
