No liquor ban in Odisha; will lead to illegal liquor sale like Gujarat and Bihar: Law Minister

Amidst several assumptions and speculations, Odisha Law Minister Prithiviraj Harichandan revealed that the government has no plans to ban liquor in the state. He denied any deliberation started or plan mooted to impose prohibition.

“Seeing the condition of Gujarat and Bihar, we do not want Odisha to go through the same problems after liquor ban. Recently, there were reports of several deaths due to liquor consumption in Bihar. There have been rampant rise of illegal liquor manufacturing and sale too,” the Minister said.

“The government will not get any revenue to serve the people, but there will only be a rise in illegal sales that will only cause deaths of people. So, instead of a complete ban, it is very important to take decisions very carefully,” he added.

The Law Minister revealed that instead of a complete ban on liquor, the Odisha Excise Department has announced Rs 100 crore of funds to educate people about the ill effects of alcohol, drugs, and other narcotics items.

“It was the orders of CM Mohan Majhi to spread awareness and do counselling of habitual drunkards. We want to create a proper atmosphere for people drinking so that they can give up their bad habits,” he added.

“I agree alcohol contributes to around 17-18% of the state revenue, so we are trying to handle everything responsibly. Taking everything into consideration, we are trying to be responsible, stop illegal liquor sale and spread awareness on liquor quitting. We are creating a balance between everything,” he stated.

When asked about the ban on dance bars, Harichandan stated, “Girls dancing in front of drunken men is not Odisha's culture. So, we decided to ban dance bars. But, we can emphasise instrumental music, vocal music in bars.”