CM rules out prohibiton

Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy, on Thursday, ruled out introducing prohibition in the state, but said the government had taken steps to ensure that people do not become addicts.

Replying to a question by Tejaswini Gowda in the Legislative Council on Thursday, he said liquor was one of the revenue sources for the state and it could not be banned.

Warnings were printed on bottles that consumption of liquor was injurious to health and those below 18 years of age were not sold liquor. The government had been conducting awareness programmes about the ill-effects of liquor consumption through the temperance board.

Kumaraswamy said there were 10,566 liquor outlets in the state. Care had been taken to ensure that as per excise laws, liquor wasn’t sold within a 100-metre radius of schools and places of worship.