Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Friday mooted the idea of either withdrawing the ban on arrack or increasing the number of liquor vending licences to cater to the needs of consumers in rural areas.
Intervening during the discussion on the State Budget in the Legislative Assembly, Mr. Siddaramaiah said, “The earlier government [JD(S)-BJP coalition] banned arrack on the grounds that it had ruined the finances of individual families and had become the cause of sorrow for the women from poor families due to alcoholism of their men folk. I had opposed the arrack ban then itself as it is not practical. As an impact of the arrack ban, the consumption of liquor has more than doubled in rural areas. Now the two options before us is to either bring back arrack or increase the (vending) licences of liquor. However, he left it to the House to think over the issue.
The poor will not shun their drinking habits just because the arrack is banned
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