The lovely tale of Liquor
during Lockdown and before
At every stage, addiction is driven by one of the most powerful, mysterious, and
vital forces of human existence. What drives addiction is longing —
a longing not just of brain, belly, or loins but finally of the heart.
Cornelius Platinga
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The use of alcohol in India for drinking purposes dates back to somewhere between 3000 and 2000 BC. An alcoholic beverage called Sura which was distilled from the rice was popular at that time in India for common men to unwind at the end of a stressful day. . Yet the first mention of Alcohol appears in Rig Veda (1700BC). It mentions intoxicants like soma and prahamana. Although the soma plant might not exist today, it was famous for delivering a euphoric high. It was also recorded in the Samhita, the medical compendium of Sushruta that he who drinks soma will not age and will be impervious to fire, poison, or weapon attack. The sweet juice of Soma was also said to help establish a connection with the gods. Such was the popularity of alcohol. Initially used for medicinal purposes, with time it evolved and became the beverage that brought life to social gatherings, and eventually consuming alcohol has become a habit for many.
With such a rich history of not just humans but also of the gods,
what is a worldwide pandemic to stop anybody from drinking?
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According to a report released by the World Health Organisation (WHO) in 2018, an average Indian drinks approximately 5.7 liters of alcohol every year. In a population of casual and excessive drinkers, with the shutters of liquor stores down, it must have been extremely difficult for “certain” people to survive lockdown. In the first two phases of lockdown, the desperation had quadrupled prices of alcohol in the Grey Market of India. Also, According to Google Trends, online searches for “how to make alcohol at home” peaked in India during the fourth week of March, which was the same when the lockdown was announced. As a consequence, a few people died drinking home-brewed liquor. People committed suicide due to alcohol withdrawal syndrome. Owing to the worsening situation and to reboot the economy, some states decided to open licensed liquor stores in the third phase of the COVID-19 Pandemic lockdown in India. This decision was the worst best decision the state governments could take. The kilometer-long queues in front of liquor stores were evidence that a pandemic can turn your life upside down yet your relationship with alcohol cannot move an inch.
The love in the hearts of those who are addicted was explicit. We might have seen addiction, we might have witnessed desperation but what happened in the month of May was madness, not just in terms of the way people pounced but also in the way the government earned. According to a report by Hindustan Times, on the first day of the third phase of Lockdown, the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh recorded a sale of over Rs 100 Crore from liquor. On the second day of the reopening of Liquor stores, Karnataka reported sales of 197 crores in a single day which was the largest ever. Eventually, the prices of Liquor were hiked to 100% to discourage people from drinking.
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There was a special corona fee that was imposed in Delhi by Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal. A 70% corona fee was imposed in Delhi, yet the sales did not drop. The entire situation was a disaster for the law enforcement officers, social distancing was easily abandoned and a basic code of conduct was happily violated. Despite the chaos created, the states continued to collect revenues. Home delivery of alcohol was allowed in Maharashtra and e-tokens were sold in Delhi.
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Demand for liquor is inelastic which means that
the sale of alcohol is not much responsive to change in prices.
In general, since alcohol policy is a state subject in India, revenue from Liquor is a cash cow for state governments. In 2018 and 2019, four states collectively collected about 20,000 crores in taxes from the sale of liquor. As much as the state earns from the sale of Liquor it is undoubtedly, a threat to the Economy. Consumption of alcohol has dire health consequences. When a person consumes an alcoholic beverage, there is a rise in BAC because of which there is a gradual and progressive loss of driving ability because of an increase in reaction time, overconfidence, degraded muscle coordination, impaired concentration, and decreased auditory and visual acuity. This is known as drunken driving. (V. M. Anantha Eashwar, 2020) Drunken driving is the third biggest cause of road accidents and over speeding in India. Road accidents are not it; alcoholism causes sleep problems, heart, and liver issues. Also, it is not about an individual’s life, it ruins the lives of all people concerned.
Addiction also causes economic loss. In 2000, Vivek Benegal and his team assessed 113 patients admitted to a special de-addiction service for alcohol dependence. They found that
the average individual earned a mean of ₹1,661 but
spent ₹1,938 per month on alcohol, incurring high debt.
They also found that 95% did not work for about 14 days in a month. They concluded that it led to a loss of ₹13,823 per person per year in terms of foregone productivity. A more recent study, Health Impact and Economic Burden of Alcohol Consumption in India, led by Gaurav Jyani, concluded that alcohol-attributable deaths would lead to a loss of 258 million life-years between 2011 and 2050. The study placed the economic burden on the health system at $48.11 billion, and the societal burden (including health costs, productivity loss, and so on) at $1,867 billion. “This amounts to an average loss of 1.45% of the gross domestic product (GDP) per year to the Indian economy,” the study said. (Mint, 2020)
Setho ka Gaon
With each passing day, the ‘curtain of separation’ weighs down on the women of Afghanistan, paving the way for tyranny to thrive.
Arth
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Digital Divide of Online Classes
Samiksha Sethi
4 mins read
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India is a developing country with its shares of a very privileged population but a lot many in the country still suffer from a problematic scarcity of food. It is no doubt that people below the poverty line, which is still has a liberally low definition, can seldom afford to educate their children. It was a challenge itself for the government and still is, to encourage the poor to send their children to schools which led to the creation of schemes such as mid-day schools, and reduction as well as the elimination of any fees to any government institution. With the covid-19 pandemic in place and classes shifting online, the former has been left redundant and the later, though still effective, in practicality is not so with the introduction of a new type of fees, more a technological barrier, of a smartphone/ device requirement.
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After the decades of economic advancement, which although have been slow and lethargic in the case of India, the foundation of connected life- capable smartphones and reliable internet continue to remain far-flung. The smartphone sales account for almost half the sales in India, the rest being feature phones which only support basic functions such as calling, SMS, and through recent advancements by Jio, an Indian telecom operator, WhatsApp. Even for the families who can afford a single smartphone, the possession is usually in the hands of one of the guardians and unavailable. The technological barrier is not just financial, it is one of skill too. Many individuals might be unaware to access most of the services, and a new application which involves juggling usage of camera, audio, IDs and passcodes just might be a parent’s dreaded nightmare.
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The issue of the financial viability of online classes is made much graver with the covid-19 pandemic. The production sector has been most affected, with the demand for physical goods falling and software goods rising, the industry is ridden with lay-offs. As the cost-cutting measures come into play in companies trying to keep afloat, the easier to lay off contracted laborer usually bears the brunt. This isn’t to say that the top-level executives aren’t laid off, but the usually educated guardians with savings do not fall into the discussion when it comes to the certainty of their wards’ education.
With low compensation, paycheck to paycheck survival, putting food on the table usually takes the
first and only priority for the laborer family, especially if they are the only source of income.
The motivation for education takes a hit too. With the loss of income to many families, some are unable to pay the fees, thus dropping their children out altogether from school.
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The financial and technological barrier becomes less significant with higher studies. With students taking up education as self-investment, they become less prone to being demotivated. In-fact, at Bachelor’s level, the technological awareness of younger individuals, which are more independent from their parents in regards to awareness in education, the students are much less inclined to leave education barring any family emergencies.
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There is also another class of parents, who refuse to educate their children through online classes. The effectiveness of online classes, when compared to physical classes, is up for debate, and some guardians tend to not pay fees for education through a screen which is causing a screeching halt in the schooling of their wards. Besides that, the expectations from parents being a full-time worker to earn a penny, a compassionate caregiver, and now getting into the hassle of being a teacher is causing a world of pain.
The impact of digital illiteracy in the case of teachers which is nearly on the same level as the parents, is dire and cannot be thrust aside.
The transition to online classes as the consequence of the coronavirus pandemic
is making teachers work twice as hard to sustain the momentum.
The incapability of teachers to possess basic technological skills while trying to teach children through new mediums and still adapting to the change of working from home sounds petrifying. On the other hand, the bullying and unkind remarks from the parents as well as the fear of not receiving their paychecks due to the crawling economic conditions further propose a huge turn-off. The demotivation has caused a profound impact on a certain group of teachers which has caused the absenteeism of them altogether. Other than the discontent and disheartenment, there are other factors which have played a role in this non-appearance of the educator- for instance, the inefficacious and indolent set of staff of the universities and schools in India which are not only resistant to adapt to any changes but also do not even fulfill their basic responsibilities are not held accountable. The physical absence of the teacher, which is the most basic ingredient of the E-learning arrangement cannot be resolved which in turn creates a lag in the learning of the students.
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Furthermore, the regional bias of the availability of the internet and technology in India is a matter of great concern. As the pandemic has turned online conveniences into daily necessities, people who live in India’s rural hinterland and other backward states, have been cut off from the world as well as their regular lives, especially when it comes to education. Keeping aside the technological viability, there is another side to this story. A significant predicament arises with 73 million people in India living in extreme poverty, the majority of them inhibiting in those areas, the question is if the community of people would be willing to participate in our new world of digital society.
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The covid-19 pandemic was as much as a surprise for any rich person as it was for an underprivileged individual. But like most of the economic crisis that has plagued the economies in the past, the pandemic has had its effects most on the poor and least on people with more savings. Even though savings have been depleted and certain high-paying jobs have been lost in the current scenario, the pandemic has furthered the divide between the two classes and as such is true for education.
Steps are required by the government to ensure this divide doesn’t grow, with newer policies and
acts to enhance digital literacy at a faster rate, last-mile internet connectivity, and teacher’s skill improvement
as well sensitization among parents regarding online classes and its effectiveness.
These steps will not just help the people in the shorter term of this pandemic, they will go a long way in enhancing the quality of human resources India has. And with the current crisis in the focus of the public and public in support of the government, the excessive investment by the government in these areas might just escape any scrutiny.