JOIN USChandrapur, a district of the Vidarbha region of Maharashtra, would go dry from April 1 this year.
This would be the third district of the Vidarbha region and Maharashtra after Wardha and Gadchiroli, where alcohol will be banned.
The three districts – which comes under Nagpur division – would be clubbed together in the form of a zone and the implementation of prohibition would be overseen by an IPS officer.
The decision was taken at the weekly Cabinet meeting presided over by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis. “This was my assurance to the people of Chandrapur, who had been electing me for the past 20 years…I had said earlier that if this assurance is not fulfilled, I would resign…but I want to personally thank the ministers and the chief minister, who went through the reasoning and the decision was taken,” Finance Minister Sudhir Mungantiwar said.
Since 1950 there is prohibition in Wardha, where the Sevagram Ashram is located – the ashram where Mahatma Gandhi, the Father of the Nation, stayed from 1936-48.
The twin districts of Gadchiroli and Chandrapur are Maoist-affected and the locals in Chandrapur have been demanding prohibition for long.
“Of the 800-plus gram panchayats, 515 had resolved for prohibition, which means 1,000-plus villages. Women and NGOs have undertaken a signature drive. The population of Chandrapur is 21 lakh and they want it,” Mungantiwar, who is also the Guardian Minister of Chandrapur, said.
Asked about the revenue loss because of excise earnings that this district was contributing, he said: “It would be nearly Rs 200 crore, but you have to look at the issue in totality. On an average, a family was spending Rs 10,000 a year towards liquor. This was affecting the health of people, it was affecting the work, it was affecting the development.”
He said that it was a social health issue and the previous government formed a committee which included people like Dr Abhay Bang and Vikas Amte.