An amendment bill is likely to be tabled in the next session of the assembly in February.
The Tamil Nadu Prohibition (Amendment) Act, 2024, which shall come into force on such date as notified by the government, aims to completely eradicate the menace of illicit liquor from the state.
Four times more liquor has been seized in the 2024 election than during the 2019 polls.
A petition argued that the provisions are 'arbitrary, irrational, unfair, unreasonable, and discriminatory" and "despite prohibition being in place for more than six decades, a steady supply of liquor continues to be available through an underground network of bootleggers, organised criminal gangs, and corrupt officials."
In an embarrassment for the Bharatiya Janata Party in Gujarat ahead of the assembly elections, a candidate allegedly said liquor can be sold openly, leading to the registration of a First Information Report (FIR) against him for indulging in "corrupt practices".
Jan Suraaj Spokesperson and one of the key architects of the Party, Pavan Verma, levelled serious allegations that funds from the World Bank meant for some other project were diverted for the Bihar Assembly elections by the central government and distributed to women voters in the state.
A phased roll-out of prohibition will hit revenues of companies, which get 5% of their volume sales from the state
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.
Five years after Chief Minister Nitish Kumar imposed total prohibition in Bihar, the liquor mafia continues to thrive, reports MI Khan.
'Removing Nitish Kumar prematurely risks unsettling both the alliance balance and parts of the social coalition that delivered this victory.'
'This Budget has a one-year agenda, which you can call the sprint, and the marathon is towards Viksit Bharat.'
'I need 3-4 lakhs for the wedding. All prospective grooms demand a motorcycle which costs 1 to 1.5 lakhs, then you have to also give a bed, cupboard, utensils, fridge,' says Kamala, her wrinkled forehead furrowing with despair.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has uncovered "multiple irregularities" in the operations of TASMAC, the state-run monopoly controlling liquor trade in Tamil Nadu. The agency found evidence of "manipulation" in tender processes and "unaccounted" cash transactions worth Rs 1,000 crore through distillery companies. The ED alleges that these irregularities involved "kickbacks" to secure increased supply orders from TASMAC and systematic inflation of expenses by distillery companies to siphon off unaccounted cash.
The ban is also estimated to have prevented 18 lakh men in the state from becoming overweight or obese, it said.
'The campaign by the Mahagathbandan has failed to capture the imagination of the electorate given the fatigue factor with the Nitish government.'
The NDA in Bihar, led by Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, strategically countered the Mahagathbandan's moves by implementing similar policies and announcements, effectively neutralising the MGB campaign promises and maintaining their political advantage.
A proposal to change the name of Mount Abu, Rajasthan's only hill station, to "Aburaj Teerth" and ban non-vegetarian food and alcohol consumption in public has sparked protests from local businesses, who fear severe economic consequences. They argue that the name change will cause confusion and the restrictions will drastically reduce tourist numbers, impacting livelihoods.
The government has not divulged the amount of the fine to be imposed on first-time offenders.
Former Jharkhand chief minister Shibu Soren is on ventilator support in critical condition. Jharkhand Education Minister Ramdas Soren was airlifted to Delhi after suffering a brain stroke.
The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India has criticized the Maharashtra state excise department for operational lapses that led to a significant revenue shortfall. The report cites incorrect fee assessments, failure to implement revised rates, and other irregularities.
The government denied granting permission to serve liquor at wedding halls, even as the opposition parties slammed the ruling Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam's move to dilute the total prohibition policy.
A senior CPI-M leader said there is no comparison between Sangh Parivar's demand for a complete ban on beef and Catholic Church's call for a ban on liquor.
Chief Minister M K Stalin has ordered a CB-CID probe to ensure comprehensive investigation and the government transferred Kallakurichi District Collector Sravan Kumar Jatavath and Superintendent of Police Samay Singh Meena was suspended, a statement said.
According to the officials, generally, a passenger is not served more than 100 ml of liquor during a flight.
Bharti has been demanding appropriate amendments in liquor policy, which the state government releases every year, and incorporating more controls to promote de-addiction.
Eighteen more people lost their lives after allegedly consuming illicit liquor in dry Bihar's Siwan and Saran districts, taking the toll in the tragedy to 24, officials said on Thursday.
The party was floated exactly two years after Kishor had embarked on a more than 3,000-km-long 'padayatra' of the state.
THE BJP sought an apology from him for "defaming" Gujarat and for promoting alcohol consumption.
Ironically, rival Tamil Nadu governments expend the most on social welfare schemes, especially targeting women and youth and children, but that money comes only by selling more liquor. There is always the specious plea, which has been peddled very many times in the past, that without licensed liquor, drinkers would go after hooch and there could be more hooch tragedies and hooch deaths. No one is convinced, but no one can dispute it either, comments N Sathiya Moorthy.
If purists are surprised as to why and how people are not demanding prohibition or not talking about past promises, both in the election manifestos five years back and even those made to the courts, the answer lies in how the state has been evolving and changing these past few years, says N Sathiya Moorthy.
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.
The annual festival, which used to attract millions of devotees from and outside the country to the hill shrine, begins on November 17 and concludes on January 15, 2023.
Under siege, Nitish plans to tweak Bihar's anti-booze law
The Bihar police will soon put to use Artificial intelligence technology to nab people involved in illegal liquor trade and other crimes, a senior police officer said on Friday.
The bench was hearing three petitions on the issue, including the one filed by the International Spirits and Wines Association of India.
Prohibition is resulting in prisons getting overcrowded.
Taking a swipe at DMK president's statement that the party would take steps to implement prohibition if voted to power in the next elections, AIADMK said it was done with an eye on polls.
The order, issued by the Home Department, will come into effect only after guidelines are finalised, said a senior official.
Do the thought leaders and policy makers (and presumed enforcers) have the courage to decide which way to go? I do not think they have. But the farce should end one day.
A bill providing for up to capital punishment to those manufacturing or trading illicit liquor in the event of hooch tragedy was on Wednesday unanimously passed by both Bihar legislature which also adopted a resolution unanimously that its members will not consume liquor.
