Veggie drinkers tend less toward crime

Veggie drinkers tend less toward crime

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KATHMANDU, Nov 16 - There is bad news for drinkers. If a study carried out by the police is to be believed, people who drink often and are non-vegetarians are more likely to engage in criminal activities compared to their more sober, vegetarian counterparts.The survey of 3,924 people arrested on various charges revealed that 3,214 were habituated to drinking alcohol. This means only 18 percent of them stayed away from alcohol. Likewise, out of 3,420 people, only 504 were vegetarians.

According to police, alcohol consumption is a major contributor to crimes in the Valley. It may be recalled that the government is in line to regulate the present

no-controls sale of alcohol in the market.

At the same time, Kathmandu Valley has become a hotbed of criminal activities like kidnapping, armed robbery, bank fraud and theft. If police records are anything to go by, nearly half of all the crimes in the country take place in the capital.

In the last three years, 11,625 criminal cases were reported nationwide while 4,821 cases were registered in the Valley (41.47 percent of the total) alone.

Rapid growth in population along with unorganised settlements as well as increased financial activities in the capital are responsible for the steep rise in crime rate, said Senior Superintendent of Police Upendra Aryal, outgoing chief of Metropolitan Police Crime Division (MPCD). SSP Aryal was speaking at a programme organized to bid him and SP Devendra Subedi farewell.

Notably, kidnapping is rampant in the Valley. During the last fiscal year, 60 cases of kidnapping were reported here while only 99 such cases were registered outside the Valley. Homicides, armed robberies, counterfeiting, public offences and bank frauds are also flourishing in the Valley.

However, MPCD's effective policing has helped decrease organised crime in the Valley in the last 19 months, claims SSP Aryal. "With the help of a dedicated police team, MPCD has been successful in controlling the number of major crimes," he said.

"The present crime rate won't go down drastically unless strong measures are taken to fight criminal activities," said Superintendent of Police Devendra Subedi.

Interestingly, during the last three months -- after the government started regulating nightlife and improved policing --- the crime rate has decreased slightly. Police have recorded 300 crimes like homicide, armed robbery, theft and rape during the period. In the previous three months, 354 crimes were reported.

Posted on: 2008-11-16 18:16:10 (Server Time)
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