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A Teetotaller's Oath for Officers | Bihar

The Nitish government gets its employees to take an oath to stay off liquor. Will it pay off?

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I do solemnly swear I will never consume liquor in my lifetime. I shall be liable for stern action if I am ever found involved in any activity involving liquor," reads the oath Bihar government's over 0.5 million employees were made to take in the last week of July.

Notwithstanding the dec­la­red purpose of raising awaren­ess against liquor consumption, the move hints at the Nitish Kumar government's dissatisfaction with the administration's eff­orts to enforce total prohibition (introduced in the state in April 2016).

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Bihar softened its prohibition laws in July 2018 and since then, first-time offenders of liquor consumption can walk free after paying a penalty of Rs 50,000. While this option may still be available to the state's government employees, their oath and written declaration are expected to make it difficult for them to break prohibition laws. Also, the oath expands the scope of their complicity as they face prosecution for doing anything related to liquor.

The oath format was sent to all principal secretaries and departmental heads by state excise commissioner B. Kartikey Dhanji. They were asked to ensure compliance by all staff.

Total prohibition was a promise Nitish Kumar made in the run-up to the 2015 assembly election. Since then, some 116,670 cases have been lodged at various police stations under the Bihar Prohibition and Excise Act, 2016, and 161,415 arrests made. Between January and March this year, around 225,586 litres of Indian-Made Foreign Liquor (IMFL) and 98,066 litres of country-made liquor were seized. In all, around 50,63,175 litres of country-made liquor and IMFL have been seized (till March 2019) since prohibition came into effect.

But with many unable to kick the habit, bootlegging has been a money-spinner and peddlers have been caught procuring liquor consignments from other states such as Haryana, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh. On August 4, a gang of six smuggling liquor to Bihar was arrested in Agra and 861 cartons of IMFL, worth approximately Rs 1 crore, were seized.

Earlier, the Nitish government got legislators and police personnel to take a pledge against liquor consumption. Station house officers were made to give undertakings that they would ensure no sale or consumption of liquor under their jurisdiction. Failure meant transfer of SHOs and no posting at any police station for 10 years.

Last month, the Bihar police headquarters debarred promotions and postings of 41 personnel, including 21 inspector-rank officials for 10 years, for being negligent in curbing the supply and sale of liquor. On August 1, an inebriated police clerk was arrested from Patliputra police station in Patna. On August 2, a sub-inspector, Pramod Kumar, was arrested, and Subodh Kumar Mishra, an SHO, was placed under suspension over accusations that they had stocked seized liquor in their police station in Sitamarhi without putting the seized items on record. The action was taken after IG (Prohibition) R.S. Katiyar raided the police station following complaints.

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