Teachers now have new responsibility in India’s ‘dry’ Bihar: To keep eye on alcoholics, bootleggers

Patna: Teachers in Bihar have now an additional and unusual responsibility: The government has directed the teachers of government schools to keep an eye on the consumption of liquor, manufacturing units, smuggling, and provide information to the officials on the toll free numbers.

Sanjay Kumar, Additional Chief Secretary of Education Department of Bihar government has written a letter on Friday to deputy directors of all zones, district education officers, and district education officers of primary, middle and higher secondary schools of Bihar to implement the same in their respective jurisdictions.

As per the directive, the principals, teachers, contract teachers and teachers of Madrasas to collect the information about consumption of liquor, manufacturing units, smuggling, transportation and other operations of mafias and informed on toll free numbers.

“We have issued two cell phone numbers 9473400378 and 947300606 and toll free numbers 18003456268/15545 for them. We will keep the identity of teachers completely secret,” Sanjay Kumar said.

“We have also directed the teachers to not allow any person to use school premises for consuming liquor,” he said.

In the last 15 days, three major liquor-related incidents have taken place in Nalanda, Saran and Buxar districts.

There have been reports of empty liquor bottles having been recovered from several school premises in the state where total prohibition was imposed in April 2016.