Amaravathi sources stated that the Andhra Pradesh government on Wednesday said it will allocate Rs 500 crore for setting up of de-addiction centres and for implementation of prohibition. Meanwhile Chief Minister Y S jagan Mohan Reddy also directed officials to include lessons on ill-effects of liquor in school text books and the officials claimed liquor consumption fell drastically after the government cracked the whip on illegal outlets as a first step towards imposition of total prohibition in the state.
Furthermore the officials informed the Chief Minister during a review meeting that sale of liquor till July showed a decrease of 12 lakh cases compared to the previous year's figures. Hence during 2018-19, the state registered sale of 125 lakh cases of liquor and under the second phase to implement prohibition, the government will take over the liquor shops in a phased manner.
The officials said “As per the route map towards total prohibition, the liquor outlets would be reduced from 4,380 to 3,500 and on the whole, the shops will be reduced by 20 percent”. Moreover the Chief Minister called for strengthening the enforcement and police departments. He asked officials to ensure that there is no smuggling of liquor and apparently he asked the officials to take strict measures to check the flow of illicit liquor and women police should be employed in Village Secretariats for effective implementation of prohibition.
