In most parts of the country, alcohol stores have been shutpost the lockdown and this has spelt doom for tipplers and others who are addicted. While some states like Kerala and Punjab made provisions to include alcohol as an essential commodity, many states didn¨t follow the same alcohol policy.
Heck! Kerala even made it possible for tipplers withwithdrawal symptoms to avail alcohol with the help of special passes ormedical reasons, a move which drew the ire of the medical community in the state. Amidthe 21-day nationwide lockdown, which began on March 25, the doctors havewitnessed a sudden surge in patients facing alcohol withdrawal symptoms.
With alcohol supplies running dry in states across thecountry some have resorted to bootlegging liquor for a high price. Morerecently, Delhi Police caught a man from UP trying to smuggle liquor under thegarb of milk bottles.
According to an India Today report, the man named BobbyChaudhry, a resident of Uttar Pradesh's Bulandshahr was caught speeding past apolice picket in New Delhi's South Avenue. The cops grew suspicious and stoppedhim. On inspecting him, the police found seven bottles of whiskey！including onebroken one. Hewas caught near Rashtrapati with bottles of Royal Green ClassicBlended 750 ml each.
According to the Times of India report, the residents of Noidaalleged that sellers are selling a pack cigarettes at Rs 500, which comes at Rs350, while loose cigarettes, which come at Rs 17 are being sold between Rs 20to Rs 25.
Noida residents, as reported by Times Of India, said thathe contacted a trader who charged him Rs 3,000 for a 750 ml bottle of 100Pipers, just double the amount it was sold for in liquor shops, at Rs 1,500. ＾Thesetraders bought liquor stocks from Delhi before the lockdown and hoarded thesame. Also, Haryana and Delhi marked liquor is being sold at 12 places acrossthe city, including sectors 5, 6 and 7, and in villages like Sorkha, Sarfabad,Chijarsi, Bhangel, Salarpur and Gejha,￣ he told TOI.?
Apart from this, there have been several instances of alcoholthefts that have reported across states. For instance, in Maharashtra, fourincidents of thefts were reported within a span of 48 hours from liquor shopsand beer bars which are shut from March 18 after the government ordered thelockdown. The thieves ran away with liquor worth over Rs 1 lakh from all thefour places.
In other cases, there have been reports of addicts committing suicide by drinking precariousalcohol alternatives. Kerala reported the highest cases of such suicides. Therehave even been reports of people drinking everything from aftershaves to nailvarnish as a substitute for liquor.?