By Vijay Singh
Navi Mumbai, India
Alcohol Was Ruining Lives, Say Villagers
While the Maharashtra government has barred people belowthe ageof 25from consuming hard liquor, the villagers of Pirkon in Uran taluka are wondering why the state even allows those above 25 to drink.
NO BOOZE, NO WOES: The sarpanch (in white) with the women of the Mahila Mandal, who help enforce the no alcohol rule
Situated around 70 km from Mumbai, Pirkon has seen a lot of people go astray because of alcohol abuse. The villagers then decided to completely ban alcohol, not even permitting it during wedding ceremonies and Gattari, a dayin theShravanseason when people traditionally engage in binge drinking.
Jagadeesh Patil, the sarpanch of Pirkon,said, "Wehave a population of 3,006 and the main occupation is paddy farming.For several years,wewere noticing how poor farmers were literally losing their senses and income on deshi and gauthi daaru (country liquor). That’s why there will be no more alcohol here."
When told about the state decision to allow only beer for those above 21 years and hard drinks for citizens above25,Patil remarked, "If our gram panchayat had its way, we would ban alcohol for all in Maharashtra."
Fifty–year–old Mathura Patil is a fiery local leader of the Akhil Bharatiya Janwadi Mahila Mandal here. For nearly 25 years, she has been locking horns with the bevadas (drunkards) in the village,for thesakeof their families."In the past, I have seen how the men started neglecting their farms, wives and children due to alcohol addiction. I have myself beaten up some of these men so that we could drill some sense into them," said Mathura.
Thelaststraw,Patilsaid,waswhen an intoxicated farmer, Ramnath Gawand (30), touched the electricity switch–board at his house, killing him instantly, leaving behind a wife, mother and a nine–year–old son. "We also had a fewcasesof liver damage among the men. All these factors made us decidetoban alcoholin Pirkon," saidthe sarpanch.
With the help of the Chirner beat police, the villagers have registered cases against three persons who were trying to sell illicit liquor in the village premises. As a deterrent, anyone caught with alcohol will be fined Rs 5,000 by the gram panchayat. Perhaps what acts as a greater deterrent is the knowledge that if caught flouting the rules,theculpritwillbe given an unofficial lesson on the evils of alcohol by Mathura and her army of Mahila Mandal women.
Uran taluka in Raigad district has 17 gram panchayat bodies, of which only Pirkon has maintained its ‘dry’ status. A part of the neighbouring Pandive villageis alsoincludedin this gram panchayat.
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