CM Trivendra Singh Rawat cancels licences of the two government-controlled liquor shops in his constituency. The state government is facing an uphill task in opening new shops in face of widespread agitation by women.
A phased roll-out of prohibition will hit revenues of companies, which get 5% of their volume sales from the state
Under siege, Nitish plans to tweak Bihar's anti-booze law
'Its three primary effects are to send the alcohol economy underground (depriving the state of revenue), to criminalise the casual drinker and to criminalise the police,' says Aakar Patel.
Opposition attacked the government, saying prohibition law was being used to target Dalits.
Asserting that liquor consumption is a social stigma, Nitish said that prohibition would improve society.
The point made by sociologist M N Srinivas, that it represented a Sanskritic act that was linked to caste, is never raised in Indian debates and the disapproval of drink is almost universal, notes Aakar Patel.
Despite its harmful effects, leaders and party workers consume khaini to keep them going during the election campaign.
The Bihar CM also said that those villages which will help in the campaign against liquor will be awarded.
The Nitish Kumar government is leaving no stones unturned to plug the loopholes in the implementation liquor ban.
Empty bottles of liquor were discovered inside the premises of the legislature in dry Bihar, in a fresh embarrassment to the Nitish Kumar government in the state, which has been drawing flak over recent hooch tragedies that have claimed more than 40 lives.
Chosen for the country's highest civilian award Bharat Ratna a day ahead of his birth anniversary, Karpoori Thakur has been the veritable 'Jan Nayak' or people's hero of politics in Bihar, whose legacy parties cutting across ideologies seek to claim.
A nod has been given for the proposed amendments to be tabled in the monsoon session of the state legislature scheduled later this month.
Manoj Baitha had sustained injuries on his hand after his vehicle rammed into a wall after ploughing through a group of school children, killing nine of them
State after state has imposed an alcohol ban, and has had to retreat, unable to address the financial and administrative fallout. Are we set for more of this cycle, asks Aditi Phadnis.
'The desire to force others to act according to the way we want the world to be is strong in our parts. This is particularly so because we have not fully internalised the idea of individual liberties. The fact is that our moralism will get us into trouble,' says Aakar Patel.
The rush for prohibition and the Supreme Court's decision to ban liquor sales within 500 metres from highways have hurt companies.
A video, beamed by news channels and portals, shows Mandal engaged in a spat with some fellow passengers who were objecting to his 'roaming around' in his vest and underpants.
'Each family brings with them their ingredients -- flour, sugar, crates of eggs, cut dry fruits, essence and their very own secret ingredients.' 'The extent they go to to keep these ingredients a secret is amusing.'
Liquor sales will obviously be hit. So, will real estate prices at what used to be prime locations, close to major thoroughfares. Food and snack sales close to highways will also, in all probability, be affected.
Addressing workers of the JD-U, a Bharatiya Janata Party ally, Kumar also reiterated his demand for special status for Bihar, which the Modi government had earlier rejected.
11,292 km. 20 million (Nitish Kumar says 30 million) Biharis. 45 minutes.
'With more and more young people relocating outside their home states for work, an all-India MLDA of 21 would be a good way to ensure that more Indians can go with the flow,' recommends Kanika Datta.
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'There is a discomfort among many of us at the fact that the Republic is not more Hindu than it could or should be.' 'This discomfort is producing laws such as the one we now have in Gujarat,' says Aakar Patel.
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The Constitution is a terrific document, but it is also one that has suppressed the Hindu majoritarian sentiment. We are living through times when this suppression is being popularly rejected, notes Aakar Patel.
"In India, one person dies every fourth minute in road accidents, which is the highest in the world," Sindhu says.
Following the Supreme Court ruling against liquor being sold within 500 metres of state and national highways, the infamous Indian jugaad is in play once again. Veenu Sandhu, Nikita Puri, Ranjita Ganesan & Avishek Rakshit find out how India is coping.
Official celebrations in most states were restricted to unfurling of the national flag and chief ministers and governors addressing the people, with fewer guests in attendance.
'The problem of a Hindu rashtra is that it has no text which can be adapted to the modern world.' 'The most prominent element of the Hindu way of organising society and the State is through caste.' 'This is not acceptable to most Hindus.' 'Because a Hindu rashtra also erodes the power and the rights of the majority of Hindus, we can be assured that this is not something that the BJP, or any other force can do,' argues Aakar Patel.
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