April 7: A war is on in Uttan, a somnolent fishing village in Bhayander west. The fisherwomen, like their counterparts in Andhra Pradesh and elsewhere, have given the war cry against the 100-odd illegal hooch dens dotting the village, spread over around 3 sq km. The women are demanding that the dens be shut down as it has devastated scores of families and reduced bread-earners to drunk idlers.The hooch dens, which have spread throughout the area over the last ten years, are allegedly being run by outsiders, whose contacts with anti-social elements and local police ensure that they face few problems. The liquor, which reaches the area in three-wheeler tempos, is also supplied to Mumbai, confirmed senior police officials at Bhayander. Due to these dens, the catch of the day for many a fisherman is a good swig of locally brewed hooch, say the women. The number of deaths due to hooch in the area, whose population is about 20,000, has increased over the last five years, claimed 60-year-old Liban BelgianShravaney.
``Every five to ten minutes, my husband goes to a nearby den and drinks liquor. He then comes home, eats and sleeps with no thought about supporting the family,'' she said, adding ``The fisherfolk usually go into the sea late in the evening, at around 8 pm. But our husbands are so addicted to hooch that they skip work. They leave their houses with tiffins and head straight to the liquor dens, and after a long drinking session, return empty-handed the next morning.''
The ugly side of drinking hit Zuran Bhandari, in her mid-thirties and mother of five, the hard way eight years ago: her husband died due to excessive alcohol levels in his body. ``My husband died drinking haathbhatti hooch when I was six months pregnant. I had no option but to become a domestic worker,'' she said. Some women also spoke of inebriated husbands bashing them up and snatching their ornaments to buy liquor.
Claimed the fishermen, ``The liquor gives us energy to drag our boats into or out of the sea.'' They also feignedhelplessness when told that their families were bearing the brunt of their drinking, saying ``We cannot do without liquor.''
The fisherwomen demand that the liquor joints be either shifted out of Uttan, or be shut down. However, they feel their protests will fall on deaf ears due to the cosy nexus between the police and den owners. Assistant police inspector R M Bhoir of Bhayander police station attributed police inaction to less staff. There are only three policemen at the Uttan outpost, and it is very difficult for them to curb these practices, he stated.
Copyright © 1998 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.
