Where wine spreads woes

Statesman News Service

MALDA. ( India) Nov. 25. — Students, including local women led by the vice-chairman of Old Malda Municipality (OMM), today staged a token hunger strike demanding eviction of many unauthorised bars for selling country liquor and fake India made foreign liquor in the school para area in ward no. 9.

The agitation was discontinued mid way following the intervention of the police and district’s administrative officials.

The students and locals alleged that the administration is reluctant to maintain law and order here and for this reason a group of traders have set up unauthorised liquor selling stalls within a 100 metres radius where four schools are located.

“Despite several reminders police are doing nothing against them”, said Mrs Tripti Pandey , the vice chairman of the OMM civic body.

They also alleged that an unauthorised stall has been set up right next to the wall of a school but nobody will protest fearing the torture of the traders who always maintain ‘friendship’ with the police.

Interestingly not only the present ruling LF board members but also the Congress board members were not much help in evicting the unauthorised liquor counters in Mangalbari areas in Old Malda.

A few months ago when a group of women had come together and demolished the unauthorised stalls which were running in the houses, police showed them another complaint against the same group of women ‘accusing’ that they had stolen valuables from the houses they ‘raided’.

Sources said that in Mangalbari all most all tea stalls and hotels ( some of them have permanent construction) located on a plot belonging to the PWD sell illegal liquor on a regular basis.Based on the statement of the excise department , administrative officials regularly conduct raid against the group responsible for making and selling “fake foreign liquor” with a view to avoid blame of the government for death after drinking that “spurious liquor”.

The excise department is also worried about the sale of original products owing to the rising trend of this fake liquor business here.

“The racket is competent enough to copy whisky brand called Teachers”, said an IAS officer. On the other hand , based on the police’s statement it was found that the excise department is reluctant to evict such unauthorised stalls who are selling country liquor procuring from the authorised counters in the district with a view to earn more revenue on total sale .

The CPI-M backed women’s wing is also upset due to the number of unauthorised local stalls at home in the slum areas failing to curb the menace in ward no 24 in the English Bazaar Municipality.

The leaders of the women wing are facing problem in protecting their members living in the slum areas who are always being tortured by their drunk husbands.

A senior leader of the CPI-M backed women wing said : “Owing to the mushrooming of unauthorised liquor counters within 100 metres of a slum area the working people spend over 50 percent of their daily wages in liquor and contribute nothing to their families. Their wives cannot protest fearing continuous torture on them and are forced to live in poverty, without educating their children”. #