Number of Indian teenagers consuming alcohol increases: Is the future sloshed?

The taboo around alcohol has come down significantly in India, especially in metro cities, where it has been accepted as a way of socialising, not only among adults but also among teenagers.

According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), about 30 per cent of India’s population consumes alcohol regularly. The percentage of under-15 boys who have not had alcohol has gone down from 44 per cent to 30 per cent and for girls it has decreased from 50 per cent  to 31 per cent, reveals another study done by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).

Easy availability of liquor, access to alcohol at home, curiosity, peer pressure and its association with a certain kind of lifestyle have contributed to this shift in drinking patterns. According to Dr Rajesh Kumar, who has been running SPYM, a de-addiction centre in Delhi, more teenagers are now consuming alcohol and reasons are still the same — peer-pressure and the need to fit in a group. ‘Try at least once’ is how it starts for many teenagers, he says. Mumbai-based psychiatrist Dr Avinash De Sousa believes that alcohol is often taken as a status symbol. He says, “For boys, it’s about their ability to withstand the amount of liquor.”

Liquor inside the school

In a conversation with school students, many admit buying liquor themselves from a store or arranging it from their parents’ collection.

“My friend brought vodka in a water bottle. We tried it during the lunch break. Nobody got a whiff of it,” says Shruti*, a Class 12 student in Indore. She considers it a thrilling experience without having to face any consequences. Her friend had arranged the booze from her father’s bar.

In another incident in Delhi, Kunal*, a student of Class 9 mixed vodka in water and brought it to the school. Not only was he drinking it inside the classroom but was also sharing it with his friends. However, he was caught on his way home in the  school bus and his parents were called. His mother blatantly refused to believe that her child would indulge in drinking.

While liquor consumption by teenagers was earlier limited to parties, weekend trips, and sleepovers, now taking alcohol to school has become a new trend and these two aren’t the only examples. “Socially, everything has changed, more so in India where the availability of drinks is in excess without any monitoring. Bacardi’s Breezer has around 4% of alcohol in it, but you need not go to a liquor shop to buy it as it is easily available in regular shops,” says Springdales School’s Principal Ameeta Wattal.

Questioning modern day parenting, she says, “In India, parents have become liberal. They allow children to drink Breezer or wine occasionally. These children are then likely to go ahead and try whiskey and other hard drinks. Parents do not know how to say no these days. All they want to do is be their child’s friend. If everybody is going to be a friend, who is going to be a parent? Parenting is important too! It is required very much in Indian metro cities.”

While schools have put the onus on parenting, parents find themselves in a complicated situation where they think being a friend is better than staying as a stranger. “Children are going to do what they want to, either we be in sync with it and tell them what should be done to what extent or remain oblivious to their life. I am concerned about where and how much is my daughter drinking and that is due to health and safety reasons. I am not against it morally,” says a mother of a 13-year-old girl.

 “Consumption of alcohol among children is rampant. When high school children party, alcoholic beverages are a part of it. These days it has entered school premises as well. On outstation trips, children are smuggling alcohol in shampoo bottles. They drink and that’s how it is. My daughter is 16 and I am aware she takes a drink or two socially,” adds another mother on condition of anonymity.

Binge drinking

Another reason for the rising issue is the various games based on liquor or centred around it, which are now gaining popularity amongst teenagers. Binge drinking, bottoms-up, or doing shots determine who can drink the most and with minimum intervals, thus leading to more alcohol consumption. According to a survey by National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), young people across the globe consume more than 90 per cent of their alcohol through binge drinking. Statistics also reveal that at least once in a month, 5.3 million young people had 5 or more drinks on the same occasion, within a few hours. And, 1.3 million young people had 5 or more drinks on the same occasion on 5 or more days over a month.

Director of Don Bosco Youth Services (DBYS), Fr Cleophas Braganza blames consumerism for this change. According to him, “The urban youth are more exposed to the culture of consumerism which seeks to promote a lifestyle of hedonism and many literally live for the weekend where they can splurge lavishly without any care.”

Laws in India

There is no uniform law related to legal age of drinking in India as it varies from state to state since the subject of alcohol is included in the State list. While it is legal to drink alcohol at the age of 18 in Puducherry and Rajasthan, it is 25 in Delhi. In fact, the age at which one can legally buy liquor is different from the age at which it can be consumed. 

For example, in Maharashtra, one can buy a bottle of whiskey at the age of 18 but can consume it only if the person is above 25.

Drinking and driving is a punishable offence with a jail term or fine or both, but the laws are applicable only for adults since under-18 offenders come under juvenile category and thus can’t be taken for a medical examination or to the police station. It is also the reason why most teenagers get away easily.

On January 1, 2017, a 17-year-old was caught drunk after his car hit a 40-year-old woman in South-west Delhi’s Nasirpur area. Even as his mother refused to accept that her son could drink alcohol, the witness confirmed that the boy was smelling of liquor and seemed tipsy. There are several such incidents but barely a few get reported due to the age factor. This particular incident caught everyone’s eye as the boy failed to escape the place where the incident happened and also because the woman was badly injured. Usually, young students get away by paying a small amount to the traffic police.

While some question laws, Advocate Amit Karkhanis suggests that considering the changing social structure, there should be some provision where juveniles are not seen as children but are treated according to the gravity of an offence. “We can’t find every solution in law. Some changes need to be embedded at home through parenting.”

Why drinking has an age limit

It is scientifically proven that the sooner a child starts drinking, the higher are chances of him/her developing dependency on it. That’s why the drinking age is kept between 21-25 years. Another reason is that the brain of a person develops till the age of 18-20. Underage drinking can therefore affect the development process and is therefore discouraged, says Dr Kumar.

Alcohol is a brain depressant and gets absorbed quickly into the bloodstream from the stomach and the small intestine. If consumed over a prolonged span of time, it may cause damage to major organs, including the liver and/or the brain. It also contains ethanol or ethyl alcohol, an intoxicating agent which produces mind-altering effects and even a small quantity of it can impair the judgment  required to take decisions including operation of an automobile. Thus, drinking and driving lead to road accidents as it has happened in the past.

What’s happening around the world

According to the NIAAA, about 35 per cent of teens across the globe have had at least 1 drink by the age of 15, whereas, about 65 per cent of teens have had at least 1 drink by the age of 18. 61 per cent of the 190 countries have a drinking age of 18 or 19 years old. It is 21 years for the United States and 11 other countries, and between 18-25 in India. However, according to Procon.org, it is banned in all 16 Muslim countries, while some have concessions for non-Muslims.

How to solve the problem

Working with the purpose to ensure alcoholics stay sober and help other alcoholics achieve sobriety, a self-help group named Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) has over 10,000 members in Mumbai, highlighting the number of people with the realisation of an addiction. However, youngsters aren’t keen on bringing any change.

“Teens have started coming for these meetings but they are not too determined to quit drinking alcohol. They have to understand that they have to play the role of a doctor for themselves,” says Ashok Ghadge, who was an alcoholic 14 years ago and is now a counselor in AA. Education is the only solution. We need to make students aware about alcohol and it effects on their body as a part of their curriculum. They need to be explained why underage drinking is discouraged. Also, parents need to encourage a discussion around it instead of scolding their children after they get caught, says Dr Kumar. He further adds that banning is not a solution, be it at home or in the state. We should rather encourage responsible drinking.

(*names have been changed)