Not contemplating a liquor ban in state: Rajasthan govt

Rajasthan's Parliamentary Affairs minister Shanti Dhariwal on Tuesday said the government is not contemplating a liquor ban in the state.

Replying to a query by Rashtriya Loktantrik Party MLA Indira Devi during Question hour in the state Assembly, Dhariwal said the government has announced an excise policy which emphasises temperance.

The minister said a committee, headed by the then additional chief secretary CS Rajan, was formed on March 26, 2013 to discuss proposals on liquor ban.

The committee submitted its report on September 10, 2013. The committee's view was that liquor ban was not a practical policy and temperance was the only solution in Rajasthan, the minister said.

The government at present is not considering a liquor ban in the state. The government has announced an excise policy which emphasises temperance, Dhariwal said.

Some of the important directions in the policy include strict compliance of timing for opening and closure of liquor shops, action on advertisements encouraging liquor consumption, awareness on the side effects of liquor, ban on advertisements in liquor shops, penalty on consuming liquor at public places and ban on illegal liquor, he said.

Earlier, the opposition BJP staged a walk out from the House over the reply of Agriculture minister Lal Chand Kataria on a question related to PM Crop Insurance Scheme.

The minister informed the House that the state government will deposit premium amount of Rs 685.85 crore for Rabi crop for 2019-20 for which the process has been initiated. He also said farmers have deposited a premium of Rs 384.51 crore to insurance companies.

Noting that the last date for doing so was December 31, 2019, Leader of Opposition Gulab chand Kataria said the government did not deposit the premium amount to insurance companies.

Speaker CP Joshi did not allow the Leader of Opposition to raise the issue further. The Opposition members created an uproar and staged a walk out.