The recent decision of licensing liquor shops in Kashmir Valley by government is contradictory in itself. While it is self evident the liquor, in any form is the source of all vices .The surge in immoral acts and decline in modesty are the primary results of consuming liquors in any society. The secondary ill effects of the liquors are rapes, abductions, killings, extortion, family disputes, broken married life, deaths, diseases ,road accidents, suicides etc. The vice of liquor has far reaching impacts on society, and when the same vice is licensed then no GOD, on earth can save the human societies from ruining, especially the youth of any nation. One side ,the government is promoting education on ethical and moral lines and devising different policies to curb the menace of drug addiction. The same is supplemented by different higher educational institutions of the valley by organizing seminars, workshops ,debates etc to gallop the growing evil of drugs in society .Even radio and tv stations broadcast and telecast programmes on ill effects of drugs on routine basis respectively. The curriculum of education is full with lessons on harms of drugs. More over , newspapers leave no stone unturned ,in educating the general masses regarding the health hazards due to consumption of liquors in any form.
Different religions of world strictly forbid the intoxicating drinks, be Islam, Hinduism. Jainism or Buddhism..More preferably ,when it comes for Kashmir the name of liquor is even ,classified as a great sin. Kashmir is the land of saints ,not only of one religion but different holy saints have spend their life of penance in its lap , be it Sheikul Alam , Lala Ded, or Lord Shiva .Across the length and breadth of Kashmir Sufis and saints are found every where. The teachings of sheikul Alam and Lala Ded are reverberating in every nook and corner of Kashmir, reflecting the moral teachings and ethics. The true Kashmirayat of our culture is not in terms of religion or materialism ,it is ethics, good manners gentle nature, and simplicity. The land, where temples and mosques reverberate from dawn to dusk appreciating and glorifying the GOD. The land where People visit annually as religious devotees and traverse the journey of tough terrain in the form of Amarnath Yatra, just to have a glimpse of LORD Shiva ,depicts the intimate relation of devotees and the sacred soil of Kashmir. Similarly Mela Kherbawani, depicts the faith, and trust of Hindu devotees .The annual fairs at Dargah Hazartbal , Chati Padsahi, Dastger Sahab, and Hazrat Sheikh Makhdoom Sahab at Srinagar, reflects the religious tolerance par excellent in the valley. It displays the divine atmosphere of Kashmir, the similitude of which is not found any where. The deliberate intoxication of the abode of saints and peers tantamount the habitat destruction and uprooting of morals, ethics, integrity and its unique religious as well as cultural ethos.
The opening of liquor shops in the paradise is therefore, ruining the chastity and sanctity of this sacred soil. The constitutional element of “unity in diversity”, will remain in history pages and will get fossilized for ever. The chief human resource in the form of youth will fall prey to this evil , and situation cannot be reversed once shown a green signal. Kashmir ,which has witnessed dark harsh decades of killings ,strikes, natural disasters, and epidemics needs to strengthen more, than to turn it into an evil society. Opening of liquor shops will add fuel to the fire in this trouble torn region. It will enmesh drunkards into more thefts, more killings, more rapes, more abductions ,more domestic violence, more suicides only ,the extrication of which will be more difficult. The consequences will be more and more hazardous for every being of Kashmir. What will liquor shops give needs to be analyzed in broader context, given the reason of generating revenue, the same can be claimed from other avenues, like tourism, winter games, religious and medical tourism etc .In place of licensing liquor shops , in the valley, government needs to promote religious tourism ,this will promote the valley religiously and economically. Given the huge chunk of population of Kashmir, it is imperative much of the percentage is inclined to religious thought and ethos than to liquors. So ,in the greater good of humanity , government needs to preserve the cultural ethos of valley by putting hold on the decision of opening liquor shops, instead of that needs to find and explore the ways to strengthen the delicate and fragile religious ecosystem of the Kashmir valley.

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