Chill out, enough rum, don't riot

PATNA: Bihar won't see riots for rum, any more. Bihar State Beverage Corporation Limited (BSBCL) has made special arrangements to ensure sufficient supply of the liquor just in case more and more Bacchus lovers go "rumming" to banish the winter chill in these cold wave conditions.
BSBCL sources said various liquor manufacturing companies have been alerted in advance to ensure adequate supply of rum to the state in the wake of the cold spell."To cope with the increasing demand, exports have been banned while attempts have been made to import rum from other parts of the country," said BSBCL managing director Vinay Kumar.
Last winter, in January, to be precise, parts of the state witnessed riots for rum. Police had to resort to lathicharge at a few places to disperse violent "rummers".
"Because of the prolonged cold wave conditions then, the demand went up while the supply remained static," recalled another BSBCL official.
A recent survey, commissioned by a liquor major, revealed that the consumption of rum is the highest in eastern India. While whisky is the most-preferred tipple of North Indians, vodka or brandy is the south Indians' fave. "Rum is cheaper and, hence, more popular in these parts of the country," said Ramashish, a Patna liquor shop retailer.
There is, usually, minimal deficit between supply and demand in case of Indian made foreign liquor. "Whatever deficit is there, it is in case of rum and, that too, for a particular brand," Kumar told TOI and claimed that this deficit would be almost nil this winter.
In case of beer, however, the corporation does face shortage in supply, especially during summer. "The peak-time gap is of 10 bottles; that is, we manage to supply 90 bottles against a demand of every 100 bottles," Kumar said.
There is only one beer plant in the state. Located at Bihta on the outskirts of Patna, this plant exports most of its produce to other states for profit maximisation.
To compensate for the short supply, BSBCL has started importing beer from Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Punjab and Goa as well.
In case of countrymade liquor, the demand is matched by supply. But the challenge before the BSBCL is the illegal market of countrymade liquor. According to earlier estimates, 200-odd countrymade liquor bottles sold illegally against every 100 bottles sold legally. The illegal sales figures have come down to 50 now, sources claimed.