A week after the Panvel City Municipal Corporation (PCMC) unanimously adopted a resolution to ban the sale of liquor in the jurisdiction of the municipality, various stakeholders are divided over whether the resolution should be implemented.
The fate of the resolution, passed on December 18, now lies in the hands of the Urban Development Department. While a majority of residents and corporators are in favour of the proposed ban, the alcohol owners are expectedly opposing the move.
“I feel it’s good decision to stop liquor sales in Panvel. We [corporators] have requested to stop liquor sale here to reduce the crime rates in and around Panvel,” said Chandrakant Soni, a corporator from the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party, hoping that the liquor ban should be extended to the entire state.
According to a PCMC official, more than 150 liquor shops operate in the limits of one of Mumbai’s neighbouring municipalities. The corporation includes 29 revenue villages, including business hubs like Taloja, Kharghar, Kalamboli, Kamothe and Turbhe. Implementation of the ban will not only affect the revenues but will also lack employment to the labourers working in these shops.
Rahul Patil, a liquor shop owner, mentioned that this ban would be detrimental to the labourers. “The PMC is creating a problem for all of us. If it stops liquor sales, it will affect the lives of liquor shop owners and labourers working here,” said Patil, who runs a shop at Kalamboli. “The shopkeepers may relocate elsewhere, but the staff working for them will remain unemployed. I think if the government provides job facility to them, then the decision is good.”
A.D.V. Manoj, a corporator from the Ward No. 17, informed that the proposal was mooted to reduce crime rates and domestic violence in Panvel. “The younger generation is being affected by alcohol nuisance. Many college students are seen consuming liquor today and many families are being affected due to husbands’ drinking habits,” he said.
Residents of Panvel have welcomed the move for a variety of reasons. While Tushar Jain, a shop owner, said the decision will result in fewer accidents and lesser drunken driving cases, Aman Singh, a housewife, felt the influence of alcoholic drinks over children will reduce if there are no liquor sales.
The liquor shop owners, though, are still awaiting clarity over the PCMC’s decision. “I am not sure when it will be implemented. Moreover, this will give rise of illegal sales. The government should think about all of this before implementing it,” said Vinayak Rajput, a liquor shop owner. He added that the decision may lead to wine shops in neighbouring Belapur in Navi Mumbai being flooded with revellers from Panvel.
Arvind Mhatre, a corporator from the Peasants and Workers Party who had proposed the resolution, cited alcohol consumption as the prime cause for increasing crime rates in Mumbai.
Mr.. Mhatre said, “Considering Panvel will become the next big hub for people due to metro, railways, and airports, I think liquor ban will make our city richer in culture.”
