President Felicitates Sarpanch of Kothal Khurd Village in Haryana for Her Work to Root Out Alcoholism

The President of India, Smt. Pratibha Devisingh Patil felicitated the Sarpanch of Kothal Khurd Village in Haryana, Smt. Roshani Devi at a function at Rashtrapati Bhavan today. Smt. Roshani Devi on being elected the Sarpanch in her village, called a Gram Sabha meeting in which a Resolution was passed that there shall be no public consumption of liquor in the village, nor would illegal sale of liquor be allowed. Smt. Roshani Devi along with other like minded women with the support of the Sakshar Mahila Samooh formed with the help of the Department of Child and Women Welfare, Government of Haryana built momentum in this direction. The efforts of these women changed the mindset of villagers to such an extent that even license holders of liquor sub-vends had to close down due to public resistance.

Felicitating Smt. Roshani Devi, and her co-workers, Smt. Usha Devi and Smt. Tripati Devi, the President said their campaign has shown that the most difficult of challenges can be overcome with courage, dedication and confidence. A number of social evils and superstitious practices have to be eradicated from society, the President emphasized. These include dowry, child marriage, female foeticide and alcoholism. The President recalled her experiences when she was the Minister of Social Welfare in the Government of Maharashtra in the early 1970's. During this period, Maharashtra faced a severe drought over a period of three years. The state government implemented the Employment Guarantee Scheme, to provide people a means of livelihood during this lean period. The President, during her visits to the districts however found that 50 percent of the money received by men folk for their work was lost on liquor and the family received very little benefit from the scheme.

The President said there is a need to carry out a study on the economic cost of evil social practices on society. She also asked the NGOs to reach out to the most under-privileged sections of society and to women especially in villages. They need to work selflessly in their midst. Empowerment of the most deprived sections is necessary for building a more equitable society she said. The President also complimented the role of the media, which has helped bring out success stories in the social sector.

The Minister of Social Justice and Empowerment, Shri Mukul Wasnik and the Minister of State for Social Justice and Empowerment, Shri D. Napolean, along with representatives of NGOs were also present at the function.

The release issued at 1445 hrs