Opinion Prohibition kills

Gopalganj was a tragedy waiting to happen, but it was not fated. The loss of 16 lives in the settlement of Khajurbani was a man-made tragedy, and it might have been prevented if Bihar’s government had paid attention to modern history, which establishes that prohibition has never worked, in India and abroad. Now Kumar, who has been making moves towards becoming a serious national player one day, is seeking political prominence through a policy which is failing in his own state. Reports from the ground suggest that the police have neither the ability nor the inclination to enforce prohibition. And the chief minister’s ploy of making the adults of whole families and villages answerable only opens the door to invasive policing and massive corruption.

Nitish Kumar would do far better to raise a toast to his prospective national-level allies in Kerala, where the minister for tourism has called for a reversal of the liquor policy introduced by the earlier UDF government, which had caused the closure of about 700 bars in the state. He has also pointed to the absurdity of trying to promote the state’s hospitality industry at tourist destinations while keeping them bone-dry. While Kumar tries to limit access to liquor, with results that range from farcical to fatal, Kerala is actually trying to make life easier for consumers by introducing internet orders. In addition, there is a crisis at the Danish brewer Carlsberg, which Kumar had wooed to his state, and which had sunk $25 million in plant and equipment. This is only one of about 70 breweries and distilleries in the state which have been affected by Kumar’s sudden turn towards prohibition politics. Dry Bihar is reminding investors that while the Centre is working to improve the ease of doing business, the arbitrariness of power remains a serious problem. Whether Vodafone or Carlsberg, investors will reject the risks associated with whimsical government.

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Gujarat is the only state to have stayed with prohibition, at the cost of excise revenues lost to a thriving bootlegging industry. Other states have drawn back from the brink, even those like Haryana, which had instituted prohibition in the Nineties in reaction to a palpably real social problem. In Andhra Pradesh, the ban imposed by N.T. Rama Rao was dismantled as unworkable by Chandrababu Naidu. Tamil Nadu has enjoyed an on-again-off-again dalliance with prohibition since independence. Prohibition attracts a certain moral constituency, but senior leaders should have the confidence to eschew a policy which can cost lives, even if it offers short-term gains.