Dr. Mhonchan Shitiri, Cavern cottage, Wokha
To be or not to be is the greatest question-William Shakespeare
[dropcap]O[/dropcap]f late we have been reading a lot of opinions and comments on the NLPT Act 1989 after NLA decided to convene a special session on the issue. And it is disheartening to note that the NLTP Act even after passing through 25 years of its enactment is still in- to be or not to be situation and the more you hear the more you are confused and puzzled. But to me the Act is still in a win-lose situation because of some unwarranted lacunae in its enforcement and implementation.
Though I am a teetotaler I have a deep concern for the ill effects of excessive alcohol abuse in our society. But then, NLTP Act is not just a moral and ethical Act but it is a legal and practical Act and so it has to be enforced that way. The core issue here is the fragile porous border Nagaland is sharing with Assam where there is no such prohibition. Some are of the opinion that after Dimapur, Wokha is the wettest district in Nagaland. I feel it is true because right from Merapani area to Ralan Area it has its borders with Assam. Therefore, unless we have some legislation understanding with Assam, the Act will continue to be a debatable issue.A pointer here is, if Mizoram a Christian state like us can lift the prohibition after 18 years of enforcement, then we need to take a cue and learn lessons from them (An expert core group should be set up to study the pros and cons before the NLA session). Mizoram government after lifting the prohibition is now considering the possibility of giving invalid pensions to policemen who are either alcoholics or drug addicts. Such pragmatic action will have more impact rather than having prohibition or not. We can also moot such ideas, then it will be a step forward to better implementation of the Act.
If NLTP is to be successfully implemented and made operational the church has to play a pro-active role, wherein atleast the mega churches can set aside funds for creating a platform to create awareness and sensitize people on the ill effects of alcohol and help the alcoholics by setting up of counselling and rehabilitation centers. After all, it was the church who spearheaded the campaign and so the onus should not be shifted only to the Government and the excise department as we know that they are financially and manpowerlly handicapped.
It will be a dark day for the Nagas the day wine shops will be officially (officially because un-officially it is there everywhere) opened in Nagaland. Nay! wineshop or not liqour is flowing freely in every nook and cranny of Nagaland and so it is back to square one whether NLTP act will be there or not. It is not only the issue of alcohol but today Nagas are besotted and is being plagued by so many problems and conflicts and not one resolution seems to be a solution. At such critical juncture we need knowledge, wisdom and vision from God to guide us through and I quote Rabindranath Tagore’s “prayer for my Nation” for the readers; Where the mind is without fear and the head is held high; ... Where the world has not been broken up into fragments by narrow domestic wall;... where the mind is led forward by thee into ever-widening thought and action into that heaven of freedom, my father. Let my country (Nagaland) awake”.
