If one travels into our state   from any border area, one would notice a sign board welcoming to state of Andhra Pradesh. This perhaps needs to be changed. We will have to welcome to Liquor Pradesh.  There are villages without drinking water .But, it is almost impossible to find a village without liquor over flowing. The latest excise auctions are inundating the villages and towns of Andhra Pradesh. Even the sacred pilgrim town of Tirupati is not spared.

Making a mockery of all the rules and regulations which the government itself promulgated, liquor shops are allowed to function besides a school, hospital, place of worship ,residential colonies etc.  The economic recession has hit almost all sectors of the economy with a degree of difference. But, liquor is one sector which is absolutely insulated from any adverse impact of recession or inflation. The advice being given to the poor people by state government is very simple .You drink as much as you can. If you fall sick, we will treat you under Arogyasree. In case if you die or become disabled as a result, we will give you pension. But, even this advice seems to be increasingly becoming irrelevant as welfare schemes are rolled back.

The legislators, who promised food, shelter, water, livelihood etc., seems to completely busy in getting licenses for liquor shops. The liquor politician nexus is once again looming large on Andhra Pradesh political landscape.  This would diminish democracy and vitiate politics to a great extent. The builder- politician nexus and liquor- politician nexus will coexist. AndhraPradesh already leads in the crimes against women. The state Human Development Report prepared for the government by Centre for Economic and Social studies estimated that   Andhra Pradesh accounts for nearly16 percent of total crimes committed against women. Surely, the state would register new records as the latest excise year unfolds. The liquor barons grabbed the licenses in the name of women. Perhaps one should reconcile to this as women’s empowerment, the liquor style. No wonder, these liquor barons may one day organize women’s processions demanding a liquor shop in their area.

Education fro All, Health for All, Water for All,  Work for All, Justice for All,  All these are outdated and old fashioned  slogans. Now the Andhra Pradesh government is busy implementing Liquor for All, Wine for All, and Brandy for All. The government does not need any United Nations declaration to implement this dubious goal.

The   magnitude of the problem is obvious if one looks at these simple statistics. The state government garnered Rs 48 crores revenue from selling the tender application forms.  In 2008, the excise department received 19,400 tenders. This now increased to a whopping 48,602.  There are 6,596 liquor shops in the state. Certain shops even fetched up to five crores. Experts feel that the ensuing municipal and panchayat elections are also one of the reasons for unprecedented interest to grab the licenses for liquor shops .There is also a sense of feeling and speculation in the political circles that the internal developments in the congress may drive the State towards mid-term elections. The interest shown by politicians reveals that liquor shops are not only money spinning business, but, in fact is an instrument to ensure political dominance at the grass roots level. Normally, the liquor sales will go up by around 50 percent during the election season. Elections are thus means perfect business logic for the liquor traders.

The liquor boom will mean disastrous for the social life. But it would prove to be devastating for politics of the state too. The congress party promised phased prohibition. May be this is how Congress defines prohibition. The congress party which still claims to be the sole inheritor to Gandhian legacy is indulging in unabashed encouragement to liquor. Democracy is replaced by liquorocracy.

The decline of real estate   seems to be the reason for the boom in liquor trade. The politicians who earlier dominated the shady real estate deals have now extended their tentacles to liquor business. The ruling party politicians reportedly dominated in this game. But, the opposition   party leaders gave a feeble but discernible competition. The faction feuds within the congress had their   reflection in liquor    trade war too. The media reports suggest that as many as 53 MLAs were directly involved in the liquor tenders. In many areas, other MLAs, ex-MLAs, MPs and other politicians had their say. Interestingly even the DMK legislators were involved in liquor tenders in the areas adjoining Tamil Nadu. Even the followers of ministers ran for liquor shops. The political mafia provides the much needed protection for the liquor trade. In turn, the liquor mafia patronized the politics.

The highest tender was as high as 5.21 crores for a shop in Nadikudi in Guntur district. The lowest tender was also as much as Rs. 25 lakhs in   Lingala village in perennially drought hit Mahaboobnagar district.  Even the excise officials were aghast to see the tenders. All estimates of revenue were surpassed.

The state government will get an income of Rs 6000 crores from the auction of liquor shops. This is 90 percent increase as compared to last time.  The government registered an increase in revenue to the tune of Rs. 3182 crores… When the liquor shop owners paid such huge money to get licenses for liquor shops, one can simply understand how much will be the sale of liquor. How can the government control the sale of liquor? How can the government prevent the belt shops? The total money that people of Andhra Pradesh shall squander away to consume liquor will be almost equal to the total plan expenditure of the state government… The liquor shop owners may even introduce door delivery of liquor and mobile liquor shops in a frantic bid to sell as much as they can .The government lost the moral right   to control the illegal liquor trade as it displayed unusual political will to encourage liquor trade.

Normally the urban areas register a 20 to 25 percent increase in liquor sale every time. But, this time there is an unprecedented increase in the tender amount in rural areas. The implementation of Rural Employment Guarantee scheme resulted in increase in the wages for rural labour. It is unfortunate that the government itself is encouraging robbing the incomes of the poor through Liquor Guarantee Scheme. The Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme is turning out to be a bonanza for the liquor traders. The welfare state is converted into a cruel hoax.

The next two years will see a social disaster. The common man’s economy will be plundered. The political life will be criminalized. The health of the poor people will be completely destroyed. The women and children will be worst victims. The family life of poor people will be torn apart. The crime graph will spiral. The democracy, the welfare state, the Gandhian values would be sacrificed at the altar of liquor trade.

Note: This article is originally written for Deccan post