Amid facetious objections that Chief Minister Oommen Chandy is changing the basic nature of Kerala, the state has committed itself to a tryst with prohibition that will be consummated in 10 years. Sundays will be dry, all bars except those in five-star hotels will lose their licences and retail liquor outlets will dwindle by 10 per cent every year until they are extinct. In the short term, the CM may enjoy the support of women, Muslim groups and the church. But things will look pretty bleak in the next fiscal, as the state tries to offset the loss of excise revenue, which now accounts for 22 per cent of income and has been growing rapidly over the last four years.
Kerala is India’s hardest-drinking state, though Punjab and Haryana enjoy a more colourful reputation. Social and medical costs are ascribed to alcohol abuse in the state. They are visibly real, but will savings in these areas be seen to offset the loss of excise revenues? Over the years, on the long journey to the decadal deadline, cascading effects could kick in, dwarfing immediate revenue losses. Tourism would be an obvious casualty, and visitors who can’t or won’t patronise five-star hotels would take their custom elsewhere. God’s Own Country, a powerful brand ambassador of Incredible India, is uniquely qualified to destroy Indian tourism. The national industry, which the prime minister sees as an engine of growth, is already battling an image problem caused by the rising incidence of sex crimes. And now, one of its most attractive destinations is about to dry up.
