Already a month since the nationwide coronavirus lockdown, most industries have concluded that without immediate and essential steps, there are going to be inevitable financial losses and job cuts. The process has begun for many sectors. One such industry that stands on the edge is the alcohol business. According to the Confederation of Indian Alcoholic Beverage Companies (CIABC), the sector employs about around two million people and assists the livelihood of four million farmers.
The industry stares at a loss of Rs 30,000-40,000 crore. Add the job losses in the manufacturing units, transport, retail, etc. and we are looking at a catastrophe in a nation that’s already witnessing a terrifying 26 per cent unemployment rate.
Alcohol and petroleum sales are taxed by the States directly and therefore, contributes massively to the State governments’ pockets. The State governments are feeling this pinch.
While the answer to what is the central government’s final stand on this regard remains unclear, there is a slowly emerging question of how alcoholics might be dealing with the unavailability of alcohol that can lead to seizures and behavioural problems. Going by an AIIMS report released last year, 5.7 crore Indians are alcohol addicts.
Earlier this month, a Hyderabad man, identified as Kumar, was filmed distributing free alcohol to people suffering from withdrawal symptoms. Messiah for many and a devil for the law, he was soon taken into custody. However, the news continued to spark the debate whose initial ignition begun in Kerala last month.
News reports surfaced in March about the nine deaths in Kerala due to the non-availability of alcohol, which included seven suicides, one cardiac arrest, one death due to aftershave consumption. In the wake of the issue, Kerala chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan, on March 30, became the first and only State leader to direct excise department to provide liquor to those with ‘prescription from doctors’.
In 72 hours, the Kerala government’s decision was put on stay by the Kerala High Court after the Kerala Chapter of Indian Medical Association criticised the State government stating that prescribing alcohol to tipplers is unethical and not ‘scientifically acceptable’.
Sakal Times spoke to Ms Mukta Puntambekar, Project Director at Muktangan Rehabilitation centre, on the management of withdrawal syndromes.
“Only in five per cent of the cases are the withdrawal syndromes severe, and for such cases, the hospitals are still functioning. For minor problems, we are getting calls on the phone, and we are getting them treated. The withdrawal symptoms can be managed by drinking lots of water with ORS, light food, and with necessary tablets,” says Puntambekar, before expressing her support for non-availability of alcohol.
“I believe the non-availability (of alcohol) is very important. Generally, people lose their inhibitions after drinking alcohol, and I don’t think they will be able to maintain social distancing. Also, immunity is on everyone’s mind right now, and alcohol can weaken your immune system,” Puntambekar added.
When asked about how alcoholics can deal with the non-availability of alcohol, Puntambekar said, “Generally, they don’t stay alone. They stay with their family. A person’s family will immediately notice if one is having severe withdrawal symptoms and can intervene by calling for medical help.”
Voicing concerns over excessive liquor sales in Europe during the lockdown, the World Health Organization (WHO) expressed its concerns through a press note, stating, “At times of lockdown during the COVID-19 pandemic, alcohol consumption can exacerbate health vulnerability, risk-taking behaviours, mental health issues and violence.”
Puntambekar’s statement, although it means well, applies only if everyone with withdrawal syndromes is ready to receive medical help for it. There is a larger portion of the population who might not be able to afford rehabilitation treatments. Their only hope lies in buying alcohol illegally. The illegal alcohol business has boomed with wine shops closed and tipplers finding other ways to quench their thirst.
As of April 22, the Panvel police had three crackdowns on the illegal trade of alcohol in which they destroyed around 300 litres of liquor and 817 litres of country-made alcohol. This is excluding the raid police conducted on six bars and restaurants from where they seized Indian-made foreign liquor worth Rs 1.55 lakh. Last week in Pune, a truck with an ‘essential goods’ tag was intercepted along the BT Kawade Road by Pune Police and was found to be carrying 1,000 litres of country-made alcohol.
The boost to the black market
Saurabh Goswami, an IT Professional from Sainath Nagar, Wadgaon Sheri had on April 16, shared a tweet that allegedly depicts illegal smuggling of alcohol behind his society.
“Since the lockdown started, I have been observing small tempos hidden behind the bushes in these areas and people regularly going there in the day and night. Then, I started observing a makeshift boat every day that travels from one bank to another. Although at first, I didn’t think much of it, later after inspection, we realised that they are actually smuggling alcohol,” said Goswami.
After the realisation, Goswami along with his neighbours informed the society chairman who then told the police.
“The police came and saw the boat, but the smugglers escaped. Thankfully, from the next day onwards, I haven’t seen anyone near the bushes.”
Throwing more light on the incident, Goswami added, “Alcoholics are still managing to get alcohol from somewhere for exorbitant prices. A person from a household of lower-income is now paying four times the actual price to get alcohol.”
Grave concerns
Speaking to Sakal Times, Niranjan Godbole, Director at Subhash liquors Pvt Ltd and owner of Kunal Wine Mart in Pune, said, “The more you restrict, the more it is going to be illegally sold. The day before dry days [in India], people usually buy two bottles instead of one.
Godbole stressed on the producers of illicit alcohol making profits during the lockdown and also about the looming concerns that surround his business.
“There is no check on the composition [of these beverages]. No one will know how much alcohol content these may have. Meanwhile, my employees are being given their salary, but how long will we give when we ourselves don’t have any income?” said a worried Godbole.
Godbole’s worries reflect the situation where the illegal trade booms, the legal one suffers, jobs come under the axe and during these tough times, state government loses a massive chunk of revenues.
Vinod Giri, CIABC Director-General, recently spoke to PTI about the serious consequences that prolonged unavailability of legal alcohol can bring.
“There are growing reports of liquor smuggling, sale of illicit and spurious liquor, and looting of shops. These not only deprive the state of legitimate tax revenues, they also pose a grave threat to public health and law and order. It is also well known that some people need alcohol on medical grounds. Blanket ban on sale of liquor is unjustified,” he said.
Taking the surging unemployment rate in India into consideration, wouldn’t it be advisable to allow the functioning of an industry that contributes around Rs 2 lakh crore per annum in revenues to the government and in turn quash the black market?
In its second letter written to all the state chief ministers (barring states which are under prohibition), the CIABC has pleaded “the state governments should take up the matter once again with the Centre to permit the production, distribution, and sales of alcoholic beverages outside containment zones, in conformity with COVID-19 guidelines”.
“Our industry is the major source of revenues for the states. We employ a 20-lakh workforce and assist the livelihood of 40 lakh farmers. Under current circumstances, when our earnings are zero, we cannot sustain for long. This will lead to huge job cuts and massive financial losses. The governments need to urgently consider the opening of sale and distribution,” Giri further added.