Kerala booze lovers 'high' & mighty

DRINK UP: There are many in the state who are raising a toast to the demands.

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Thiruvanathapuram: Booze lovers in Kerala now have reason to say cheers. The glass for them is half full with more than 6000 members signing up in just two weeks for the newly formed All Kerala Drinkers' Welfare Association.

The association pledges to protect the rights of alcoholics. In a state where the per-capita consumption of liquor is a head spinning 8.3 litres, the highest in the country, the association's heady success is not surprising.

“We are not planning to encourage drinking. The government and abhkaris are looting the poor man who comes for an evening drink. We have no facilities for these people. The government's revenue from the liquor industry is so huge but what are they doing to help families affected by drinking?” said an alcohol consumer, Vauvakavu Basheer.

And the list doesn't stop there. The association has also presented the government with a 15-point demand that includes a room for the lower-middle class drinker—assurance that one can drink in peace and permission to distribute alcohol in ration shops.

Needless to say, there are many in the state who are raising a toast to the demands.

“For ordinary people like us there is no place to drink. I can’t buy it and take it home where I have a family. We have to hide it from them whenever we drink. So when we contribute so heavily to this industry we also need a place to drink,” said another alcohol consumer, Rajan.

Majority of the drinkers here can’t afford to visit permit rooms serving alcohol.

Unlike the pub culture in other states, here it's the local Theka that rules the roost.

But with arrack ban forcing majority of them to shut shop, Kerala's booze lovers' cup of woes is spilling over.

For the average Malayalee who is eternally married to alcohol, contributing a huge share to government revenue, the demand for a room to drink sounds quite genuine.