Women stage protest, demand ban on liquor sale in UP
VARANASI: Girls and several women from the village took out a protest march against social evils like female feticide, dowry, and child marriage in the Mirzamurad area of Varanasi. Demanding a complete ban on the sale of liquor in Uttar Pradesh, the women marched from Lalpur Chatti to Rane village via Kosra GT Road, Mirzamurad where Balika Mahotsav was organised.
The women shouted slogans for a ban on the sale of liquor in UP, against the dowry system, and female feticide. Several social workers accompanied the women.
Soni said, “We demand a complete ban on the sale of liquor in the state because it is a cause of many evils. Alcoholism is growing in the villages because of its easy availability. Therefore, first of all, the sale of liquor should be banned in rural pockets. Then it should be banned in the entire state.”
Asha, another participant in the march, said that dowry is another social evil that needs to be eradicated. The dowry system is still being practised in society and has become a status symbol. Society should boycott it.
Balika Mahotsav was organised at Samma Mata Mandir in village Lalpur (Rane) under the joint aegis of Lok Samiti, Varanasi, and Asha Trust. In the Mahotsav, girls also staged a play portraying the effects of liquor on society and atrocities on girls and women due to alcohol. They showcased how alcohol was destroying the family and society. They appealed to the people to stop drinking alcohol. They also held a meeting and discussed the rights of a girl child.
The play was inaugurated by district panchayat member Rajendra Prasad, Mahila Chetna
Samiti convener Sharmila and Shailendra Singh Pintu by lighting a lamp.
The women demanded that the government should stop giving licenses to set up liquor shops in the villages. Dr Swapnil Srivastava, who came from Swaraj Vidyapeeth, Allahabad, said that the condition of teenage girls in the villages is worrying. There is still discrimination between boys and girls. Despite being good at studies, many girls are forced to quit studies and are married off at a very young age. Social worker Sharmila emphasised creating awareness among the girls about their safety.