But now the 40-year-old has nothing to fear while running her establishment, where most customers are low-income people and home-made liquor is consumed in excessive amounts. Her fears eased after Bauddha police implemented an anti-alcohol drive that respects the cultural sensitivities of the locals. [break]
At a time when the campaign launched by the Metropolitan Traffic Police Division against drink-driving has gained nationwide acclaim, police in Bauddha have launched their anti-drink campaign in an area where more than four dozen pubs operate.
Tamangs and Sherpas are a majority of the customers in Naya Basti area pubs and home-made liquor is the main drink round the year. “Be it a festive season or merry-making ceremonies or even a period of grief, alcohol use is unavoidable, but now the situation has changed because of the anti-drink campaign,” said Sangmala Tamang.
DSP Manoj Kumar KC, chief at the Metropolitan Police Circle Office, Bauddha, said, “When we observed that most pub operators and customers were from the same community, we decided to tailor our campaign accordingly. We focused our drive with due respect for the culture of the people living in the area, he added.
For this reason, a total ban on liquor was out of the question, he said. So the campaign was launched through the initiation of the locals themselves--liquor consumers and pub operators both. Police formed a Crime Control Circle under the coordination of Mim Bahadur Lama and a five-point working procedure was adopted.
Coordinator Lama said, “We don´t allow selling of liquor to persons below 30 years as most law and order problems are created by under 30-year-olds when drunk.” The pub operators are strictly required to note down particulars of their customers-- names, addresses, occupation, contact number-- and no one is allowed to sell liquor to police officials. The pubs have to close by 8 p.m.
Sub-Inspector Santosh Kumar Gole at Naya Basti said, “We make frequently and sudden inspections and the situation has been under control in recent days.” In case of any incident, members of the Crime Control Circle report to us, he said.
DSP KC said, “Every day we had to face several cases resulting from drink, but in recent days such cases have decreased dramatically.”
But some pub operators are not happy, as they are not allowed to sell to people below 30, who are the major clientele, Lama said. Most operators are illiterate and cannot keep records properly, he added.
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