The Hindu : Tamil Nadu / Chennai News : In spirited defence of prohibition

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Monday, May 04, 2009
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Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu - Chennai

In spirited defence of prohibition

Staff Reporter

“The loss of revenue for the poor far exceeds the revenue earned by the government”

CHENNAI: A woman, who had dealt with an alcoholic husband for 30 years and raised her three girl children and a son working as a maid, was among the several people who shared their stories of personal sufferings due to alcoholism of family members at a meeting organised by non-governmental organisation Nandini Voice of the Deprived here recently.

The meeting used the testimonies of victims of alcohol abuse by family members to condemn the current State policy which has encouraged the proliferation of liquor shops. “The current alcohol policy of the government is hurting the interests of the poor as they are the ones who are most addicted to alcohol,” said N. S. Venkatraman, trustee of the NGO.

S.R.Kalavathy of the Unorganised Workers Federation said, “the unorganised workers constitute about 93 per cent of the Indian workforce. They are the ones who are most addicted to alcohol. It is certainly going to hurt the country’s economy,” she said. The loss of revenue for the poor far exceeds the revenue earned by the government due to policies that encourage open sale of alcohol, she added.

Aruna Devi, a visually challenged lawyer, who counsels alcoholics and their family members, said alcoholism was a social disease and easy availability of liquor only sought to aggravate it. “The worst part of alcoholism is that it destroys the lives of children whose parents are alcoholics,” she said. She added that persons addicted to alcohol often suffered from poor appetite and could develop mental health issues such as paranoid, schizophrenia. “Also alcoholics tend to suspect the fidelity of their partners, which also triggers domestic violence,” she said.

A number of people who came to her held wrong notions about curing alcoholism, she said.

“Some mothers feel their alcoholic sons would get cured if they are married, but these notions are wrong,” she said.

Simha Chandran, general secretary, Tamil Nadu Handicapped Federation, drew attention to the frequent road accidents happening due to drunk driving. He said accidents due to drunk driving also lead to several cases of disability.

Mr.Venkatraman lamented that none of the concerns related to alcoholism, drunk driving and ensuing disability were raised in Parliament.

In a concluding note, social activist A.Narayanan underscored the need to treat alcoholism as a public health issue. “Just like swine flu and avian flu, alcoholism is a major killer and governments should reverse their policy of promoting alcohol sale for boosting state revenue,” he said.

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