Illicit brewing thrives in village

Nashik: The economy of Talegaon village, where a five-year-old girl was allegedly raped by a 15-year-old boy, largely runs on illicit liquor brewed in the farms - the only source of liquor 20 nearby villages where liquor is banned. For the past seven years, whenever a villager tries to draw the attention of police or the district administration, they are threatened with registration of cases under the SC and ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.
The village, with the population of 2,600 people, is home to illicit brewing business carried out by the Marathas, Dalits and the tribal communities that have equal number of houses in the village.
"A visit to the farms will reveal the strong infrastructure that has been in place for the illicit brewing activity. At any given moment, at least 5,000 litres of brew would be easily available," said a villager who had been presenting memoranda to the excise department, police and even the district collectorate.
"When we submit memoranda to administration, a police messenger comes to us and says 'they' (those who run the illicit business) have warned of registering 'atrocity' complaint against us. At one such incident several people gathered outside my house, threatening to file the 'complaint'. My family members are shocked," another villager said.
Deputy sarpanch Hausabai Date said police action was long awaited in the issue that often resulted in tension. "We want the police and revenue department to act swiftly in the case," she said.
A woman from the village said the village had adopted a resolution in favour of 'prohibition'. The Samata Mahila Mandal of the village had taken the lead and proposed the prohibition programme, which was adopted by the gram panchayat on September 29, 2014. But, till date there has been no development on the same.
The villagers claimed presence of around 50 brewing units and said that area is a major hub for the partying people even from Nashik city. "It is a threat to the young girls and women as these people keep on visiting the farms where girls and women are working. Besides, these people also cause ruckus in the villages," another villager said.
When contacted, resident deputy collector Ramdas Khedkar said he would raise the issue with the district collector.
When we submit memoranda to administration, a police messenger comes to us and says 'they' (those who run the illicit business) have warned of registering 'atrocity' complaint against us. At one such incident several people gathered outside my house, threatening to file the 'complaint'. My family members are shocked