A few days back, the government said that people come first. Then how come, for the same government, selling alcohol and getting tax revenue becomes the priority? Either they didn't think of the repercussions, or they ignored it. Social distancing was mocked outside the wine shops by the same people, who think highly of themselves because of their education and work background. These morons spread knowledge on social media about social distancing. The government, on one hand, is transferring money to low-income background people's banks account for food and essentials, and on the other hand, opening the alcohol shops. How can the government ensure the same money is not used to buy alcohol by a poor alcoholic? What if the same low-income background alcoholic person leaves his family hungry and sick, and spends all the money on alcohol?
It's a fact that alcohol alters behavior and make people aggressive and depressed. What if people now become more aggressive, less productive, more frustrated, and depressed, because of the side effects of alcohol? What if after this, domestic violence increases amidst lockdown? I am really not sure what government has achieved by this move. What if the situation worsens because of this stupidity, and the revenue earned goes towards handling the Corona crisis only?
Tax revenue is important, but governmnet should come up with better plans. You just can't open alcohol shops during a pandemic, and expect people to behave sensibly. In India, everyone thinks about themselves before others and the country's welfare. People have a private swimming pool in their balcony for luxury. They waste tons of water for its upkeep and then donate money for suicidal farmers. That's the hypocrisy level of this country. Selling alcohol online with few rules in place to ensure social distancing can be one solution. Those rules should put a limit on the quantity bought by an individual. Another way could be issuing online tokens with time slots and quantity. This will also ensure social distancing, as fewer people will gather at a time.