Patna: Following a complete ban on the sale and consumption of alcohol in Bihar by the Nitish Kumar government from April 5, thousands of alcoholics are now suffering from withdrawal symptoms and trying peculiar ways to find an alternative to alcohol.
Soon after the imposition of alcohol ban in Bihar, hundreds of patients, who have developed withdrawal symptoms, could be seen standing in queues at hospitals and de-addiction centres complaining about shivering, headache and palpitation.
Recently, two alcohol addicts, including an assistant sub-inspector (ASI) of police, died after they could not get their daily dose.
In the past few days, several agencies across media platforms have been discussing the ways that alcohol addicts in Bihar are relying on to deal with the sudden alcohol ban.
Here are 5 unusual solutions alcohol addicts have resorted to in order to deal with Bihar’s alcohol ban.
1. A native of Betiah district, who was addicted to country-made liquor, started eating soaps in the hope of getting high.
2. Some de-addiction centres also reported that a few alcoholics became so restless that they started eating large amounts of paper, chilli and painkillers to suffice their craving for a high.
3. Several people in Bihar are now seeking bhang as an alternative to their ‘daily dose’. The good news for them is that consumption of bhang is not yet illegal in Bihar.
4. Most of the addicts are also using ganja (marijuana) and sedative medicinal syrups as replacements to alcohol as they can be easily arranged. However, the prices of marijuana have already shot up.
Following the abrupt ban on alcohol, Bihar’s Special Task Force (STF) believes that large amounts of marijuana and heroin are being smuggled from Nepal and Assam.
5. Fermented drinks like ‘toddy’ (a sweet sap that is a source of palm wine and sugar) and ‘neera’ (also known as palm nectar), which are banned in public places, are being used by addicts to satiate their ‘thirst’.
