Prohibition law made stern in Gujarat

August 31st, 2009 AHMEDABAD - The police detained at least seven women for selling illicit liquor known as hooch in local parlance that recently claimed three lives in Gujarat. Two breathed their last on Friday while one more person died on Saturday after consuming drinks laced with a chemical used in making perfumes.

July 28th, 2009 AHMEDABAD - The Gujarat State Assembly on Tuesday passed a Bill proposing stringent punishment up to death penalty to deal with illicit liquor trade in the follow up of the recent hooch tragedy that claimed over 130 lives in the State. The Bombay Prohibition (Gujarat Amendment) Bill 2009 was passed with a majority vote in the House.

July 17th, 2009 AHMEDABAD - The Crime Branch of the Gujarat Police arrested Vinod Dargi, the key accused in the Gujarat hooch tragedy, here on Friday. Police also arrested two other associates of Dargi, Ajay Thakkar and Sunil along with him.

July 13th, 2009 NEW DELHI - Congress Party MPs today staged a protest against hooch tragedy in Gujarat that killed at least 130 people due to consumption of spurious liquor. Congress has alleged that a BJP Corporator of Mahemdabad Municipality was behind the hooch tragedy.

July 11th, 2009 AHMEDABAD J - The toll in Ahmedabad hooch tragedy has rises to 122after nine more deaths were reported. The police said that now 122 people have died and 227 were admitted to various city hospitals.

July 11th, 2009 AHMEDABAD - Rejecting liquor baron Viajy Mallya's suggestion to rethink the state's prohibition policy, the Gujarat government said, that he should look at his liquor business and keep out of state's affairs. With the death toll of state's worst liquor tragedy nearing 130, Mallya, the owner of United Breweries, had said the enforcement of prohibition is becoming a mockery, which leads to illegal, unhygienic and unsupervised production of poisonous cocktails that claim innocent lives, and called the politicians to rethink over the prohibition policy in the interest of the people.

May 19th, 2009 AHMEDABAD - The Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) is set to launch a Gujarat-specific weather information website June 1, an official said Tuesday. The website, which was long sought by the Gujarat government considering the state's 1,600 km-long coastline and the increasing maritime activity.

April 23rd, 2009 AHMEDABAD - Gujarat Chief Minister and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Narendra Modi on Thursday invited Congress President Sonia Gandhi to Gujarat. "Sonia Gandhi is coming to Gujarat for campaigning.

April 1st, 2009 DAHOD - The Gujarat police have intensified patrolling on a highway bordering Madhya Pradesh following reports of a number of make-shift country liquor vends coming up in the neighbouring state. The police suspect that before the polls, a lot of liquor is being smuggled from Madhya Pradesh to Gujarat, a state under prohibition.

March 20th, 2009 AHMEDABAD - Renowned dancer and social activist Mallika Sarabhai has said that she would contest in the general elections as an independent candidate from Gandhinagar. This is the constituency from where Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) 's L K Advani was elected in the previous elections and is again contesting this time, also as the party's prime ministerial candidate.

March 14th, 2009 NEW DELHI - After the imposition of the model code of conduct, the Himachal Pradesh government seems to have suddenly turned to Gandhian ways. It has replaced over 60 huge hoardings across the state highlighting the Bharatiya Janata Party government's achievements with Mahatma Gandhi's message on prohibition! 'Use of drugs dangerous to health; teetotaller families are blessed,' say prohibition messages on hoardings carrying a big sketch of Gandhi.

March 4th, 2009 AHMEDABAD - The Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) Tuesday said it will field candidates in all the 26 Lok Sabha seats in Gujarat. 'Gujarat is an important state for the BSP high command.

March 4th, 2009 AHMEDABAD - The Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) has decided to field candidates from all the 26 Lok Sabha seats in Gujarat, it said Tuesday. 'Gujarat is an important state for the BSP high command.

January 12th, 2009 AHMEDABAD - Underlining the importance of the Buddha's teachings in the contemporary world, Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi Tuesday said he wished to build a Buddhist temple in the state. 'Gujarat has ancient structures of Buddhist temples.

December 29th, 2008 NAVASARI - Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi Tuesday asked people of the state to resolve to build a 'Golden Gujarat'. 'The entire country is looking at us and at our development.