Brewers owe much of their business growth both to their managements’ acumen and feel for the market and the patronage that boozers religiously bring to bars and other places serving alcoholic beverages.

The beer market, including pubs for local brews in towns and the rural areas, rarely turns jittery. Whenever it does, it is more often than not due to a price increase, but after a while, the habitual drinkers easily adjust their pockets to the situation.  

The scientific skill of brewing is as old as drinking itself. The production of beer is not the same as the preparation of soup because the latter can be served with different flavours, while the ingredients brewers mix in their vats are basically the same.

It’s only taste that makes beer brands favourable to different drinkers but the outcome is the same – all become tipsy and, if moderation is not exercised, others get stonkered.

People caught in the alcohol trap always make a miserable sight in public places and in their homes as well. They may pretend to be smart chaps at a certain stage but in the long run, they begin to lose control over their behaviour and become stupefied. It’s simply too bad when drunkenness turns habitual.

While no reliable statistics are available about alcoholics in this country, the situation must have reached an alarming level to prompt  the national public health authorities to embark on a six-month countrywide drive against alcohol abuse.

Though it is a commendable effort by the leadership, which  will help galvanise public reaction to the scourge, the resources being channelled into this campaign could have been put to better use for national development had those who have become addicted to alcohol been shielded from it since their youth.

Hereditary traits
As has been observed by medical health experts, the heavy burden of alcoholism is embedded in the hereditary traits of individual families. The reason probably lies in the tendency of these families to depression, a state of mind for which most of our people never seek psychological care.

According to the World Health Organisation’s Expert Committee on Mental Health, alcoholism is any form of drinking that goes beyond the traditional and customary 'dietary' use or ordinary compliance with the social drinking customs of the community concerned.

In many cases, the problem of alcoholism starts with a patient’s family background. Therefore, there is a need to raise  public awareness so that more people get fully involved in this campaign as a matter of serious concern to every family.

However, the duration of the campaign itself is very short, taking into consideration the magnitude of the problem and the time it takes individuals to wean themselves from the bottle. We, therefore, appreciate the pledge by the country’s leading brewers and distillers to back the effort to alert the people about the dangers those consuming their products expose themselves to.

However,  the commitment notwithstanding, the big companies’ participation in the awareness campaign and its impact on the ground remain to be seen.

Alcohol abuse propels several other social ills, including neglect of children, irresponsible behaviour, crime and the spread of the deadly Aids virus.

With the number of alcoholics and drug addicts on the increase, what really is the future of this nation? Let us all join in the fight against addiction to alcohol and illicit drugs.

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