Uttarakhand village bans liquor at weddings, social gatherings, a women's drive

Ratir Kethi, a village in Uttarakhand, passed a resolution,on December 29, banning distribution, sale and serving of liquor in weddings, religious and social gatherings. The resolution was primarily driven by the women of the village.

The resolution was passed in the presence of at least one member from each of the 80 households of the village, Surendra Singh Mehta, the village head, said, according to the Indian Express.

The resolution also lets panchayat take up cases of misbehaviour of a drunken person with family members or carrying out domestic violence to the police.

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A copy of the resolution has been given to the local police station and authorities to seek their support.

The resolution is a response to frequent incidents of drunken brawls, arguments, and crime in Ratir Kethi, which is located about 81 kms from the district headquarters.

Liquor is sourced from Saama sub-town, 20 kms away from Ratir Kethi, and sold in villages by local retailers. The resolution also has a provision of villagers approaching the police if any person creates a nuisance or engages in a scuffle at a public place or a gathering in a drunken state.

Bageshwar SP Manikant Mishra said: “The villagers have requested us to ensure that the sale and consumption of liquor do not take place during marriage functions and other events. The police cannot stop that legally, but their resolution deserves appreciation. I will visit the village soon to speak to the villagers and discuss how they can stop this. A social evil can be stopped only with the cooperation of society.”

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The resolution seeks to put an end to “a tradition” of spending huge amount of money to buy liquor for weddings”.

In a similar case, women from a village in Tharali block of Chamoli district and Didihat division in Pithoragarh district had decided to ban liquor, last year, saying it was destroying young people’s lives.