Jagran correspondent, Kanpur. The benefits of prohibition imposed 10 years ago in Bihar are beginning to be seen. According to a research by IIT, people are spending more on food instead of alcohol. That means the intake of calories, protein and healthy fats from nutritious food sources has increased. Also, there has been a reduction in the use of processed foods. The biggest thing is that social changes are being seen and domestic disputes have reduced.
In Bihar, Nitish Kumar's government had implemented the liquor ban order on April 1, 2016. According to Vinayak Krishnatri of the Department of Economic Sciences of IIT, this ban not only saved domestic resources but also brought about a change in positive behavior. Decreased alcohol consumption led to less marital discord, improved domestic stability, and greater priority was given to spending on nutritious food.
The study showed that prohibition freed up household resources, which were then diverted towards the consumption of healthy food rather than unhealthy options. Greater benefits were seen in urban areas, where enforcement of the ban is relatively more effective. The policy-relevant finding is that protein intake has increased in a state where the diet has traditionally been dominated by grains. There was a shift away from cheap, unhealthy fats to better quality cooking oils, which improved overall diet quality. Intake of calories, protein and fat from pulses, dairy products and oils from nuts and other food sources has increased significantly. There was a decline in consumption of packaged goods, which are often consumed with alcohol.
Sukumar Velakkal, Associate Professor, Department of Economic Sciences, said that the main objective of prohibition in Bihar was to reduce domestic violence and alcohol-related social harms. The study also suggests it may have unintended nutritional and health benefits. The quality of the diet improved significantly by shifting expenditure from alcohol to food items.
Research compares Bihar with UP, Jharkhand and Bengal
IIT's research paper has been published in Agricultural Economics Journal. The research team conducted the analysis based on household-level data from two rounds (2011-12 and 2022-23) of the nationally representative Consumer Expenditure Survey conducted by the National Sample Survey Office (NSSO). The researchers compared Bihar with neighboring states Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand and Bengal to take into account broader time trends and regional economic changes. Used several statistical matching techniques to ensure the validity of the findings.
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