Kerala panel to study ill-effects of liquor

Thiruvananthapuram, May 8 (IANS) The Kerala government has set up a committee to conduct a comprehensive study on the ill-effects of liquor consumption, it was announced Thursday.

Minister for Excise K. Babu said the committee would be headed by K. Vijayakumar, who heads the community medicine department at the Medical College here.

"The study will look into all aspects of the ill-effects of liquor consumption," said Babu.

The committee comes up at a time when the Kerala government is debating the issue of giving licenses to 418 bars that have been closed down since the beginning of this fiscal years.

In Kerala, liquor is sold in 752 bars, hotels and 383 state-owned retail outlets.