Karnataka village marks second anniversary of going alcohol-free

Residents of a village in Karnataka's Gulbarga District said their savings had swelled as they marked the second anniversary of going alcohol-free yesterday.

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Till two years ago, drunken brawls and domestic quarrels were a common sight in Nimbal village. Not just the men, but the village youngsters were regular drinkers.

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The women in the village took it upon themselves to make Nimbal a dry village. A committee of 51 members was formed who forced the liquor shops in the vicinity to pull down their shutters.

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The women generated awareness about the ill-effects of liquor and held meetings across the village to discourage its consumption.

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A villager, S.S. Paga, said that residents were saving up a great deal of money now.

"It is a great step taken by the elderly and the women in our village. They did a good thing. Approximately in a year our village was spending between rupees 10 million to 15 million on liquor, we are saving that amount now," said Paga.

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Another resident, Arvind Patil, claimed that everyone in the village had quit alcohol.

"We constituted a registered body of 51 women in our village to accomplish this task. In our village people were spending minimum rupees 35,000 to 40,000 everyday on liquor but in the last two years the village has improved a lot. Not a single person in the village drinks," said Patil.

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To further discourage alcohol consumption among villagers, a fine of rupees 1,100 is levied from people who come drunk to the village.