Nagaland government enacted the Nagaland Liquor Total Prohibition Act, 1989 through the pressure of the Mothers Association and Church Organizations and the Act from 1990. The Act was first amended in the year 1994. However, the state has failed to implement the prohibition resulting in rampant bootlegging and causing loss of state revenue to the tune of hundreds of crores annually. Moreover, the complete failure to effectively implement the prohibition has invited massive inflow of spurious IMFL into the state posing serious health hazard. Very often, the state government particularly the excise department had openly admitted its failure to enforce the total Prohibition Act in the State citing various reasons including lack of manpower. For the past few years, the issue of total prohibition Act in the state had become a hot issue for debate. Series of consultative meetings on the issue had been held where majority except the Church were in favour of either lifting the prohibition or for partial lifting of the prohibition and for a proper mechanism to regulate the same. The issue was also discussed in the floor of the state legislative assembly where the house including the opposition were almost unanimous in lifting the prohibition in view of the annual huge loss in revenue the state was incurring besides other factors. On the other hand, the Church and mothers also seemed to be divided on the issue of prohibition. (NP) Nagaland Baptist Church Council (NBCC) has said prohibition act enacted in June 1989 when Dr S.C.Jamir was chief minister had been initiated by it way back since 1875 and later intensified in 1962 after which the church, women and youth spearheaded the prohibition movement 1974 resulting in declaration of Mon as dry district in 1988 and Mokokchung in January 1989. Highlighting its stand on prevailing debate on Nagaland Liquor Total Prohibition Act 1989 (NLTP) Thursday , the NBCC response in the form of a lengthy write up, reaffirmed its resolve to oppose any move to lift or regulate prohibition in Nagaland. NBCC liquor prohibition committee member Rev. L. Kari Longchar , the Prohibition Act suffered “partial” failure due to lack of political will on the part of the state government and sincerity and cooperation on the part of implementing agencies. The NBCC claimed that both excise department and police sources shared the view that with Prohibition in force, crime rates and road accidents have decreased while general law and order improved, more peace and tranquility prevailed at night, regular fights in families or in the streets reduced and women felt safer. Stating that it expected the state government to strengthen its position by amending “loopholes” in the Act, and not yield to subtle pressures, the NBCC warned that any move to lift the Prohibition would be confronted with “undoubted people’s protest”.(NP)
Posted on: Mon, 09 Sep 2013 12:45:08 +0000
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