Beef ban, prohibition will hurt the Indian economy: Adi Godrej

Beef ban affects business as it hits farmers' income, prohibition bad for social structure, Godrej tells The Indian Express

Adi Godrej, chairman of the Godrej Group, has openly spoken against the government’s policies like banning beef and having a prohibition policy, stating that these moves will affect the economy, a report in The Indian Express states.
 
“Some of the things are affecting growth, for example, the ban on beef in some states. (This) is clearly affecting agriculture, affecting rural growth. Because what do you do with all these extra cows? It is also affecting business, because this was a good source of income for many farmers. So that’s a negative,” he told the newspaper in an interview.
 
 

This is the first time that an industrialist has criticised the Centre’s directions on these issues.

 
Godrej cited history to prove his point on beef. “There is nothing against beef in our religion. It is a practice that evolved over years of drought, and the elders said don’t slaughter cows, preserve them for milk for children. That has turned into a religious belief. This is ridiculous. Vedic Indians were beef-eaters,” he said. He agreed with the Bombay High Court’s judgement and said, “Now the Bombay High Court has said that alright you can stop the slaughter of cows, but you can’t stop consumption. It’s silly to say that possession of meat, which is eaten all over the world, is a crime."
 
Meanwhile, he pointed out the problems that arise when policies like prohibition of liquor are implemented. “There are certain things like prohibition. In order to win elections and get women’s votes, some states are doing that. Bihar has brought prohibition; Kerala has brought prohibition. Prohibition is bad for the economy. It’s bad for social structure, for drinking doesn’t reduce. It gives rise to bad liquor, and then mafia. All over the world it has been unsuccessful. In America, it has been unsuccessful. In India, we tried prohibition, but we were unsuccessful."
 
These are the two main issues, done for political gains, affecting the economy, Godrej said. However, the industrialist also termed these actions as being a part of a democracy. He said, “This is part of democracy. In democracy, you must understand, there are lots of advantages over dictatorship or autocracy. But clever democratic leaders will make sure that the disadvantages are minimised and the advantages are maximised."