Alcohol Atlas - Some alcohol related statistics on India

A study by NIMHANS has shown that the average age of initiation has reduced from 28 years during the 1980s to 20 years in the recent times. The National Survey (study sponsored by the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, 2004) revealed that among adult men, about 21% were current drinkers and about 17% were regular user of alcohol, and among those seeking treatment about 44% were alcohol users. The most recent data on alcohol use is available from the National Family Health Survey (NFHS-3, 2007) Data collected in 2005-06, published in September 2007. It showed that about 32% were current users of alcohol and between 4 and 13% were daily users. The proportion of users among rural and urban population is very similar (32% and 31% respectively).
We are the dominant producer of alcohol in the South East Asia region (65%) and contribute to about 7% of the total alcohol beverage imports into the region. The increasing production, distribution, promotion and easy availability of alcohol coupled with the changing value of society and Illiteracy have resulted in a big challenge for the country in the absence of advocacy, research & documentation and a National Policy on Alcohol.
Kerala accounts for the country's highest consumption of alcohol followed by Maharashtra and Punjab.Jammu and Kashmir records the "lowest" alcohol consumption. According to experts, 75 per cent alcohol consumption has been seen in Eastern India.However, there is good news as 90 per cent women in India abstain from this health hazard.The prevalence of alcohol use in men has been maximum in Arunachal Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Sikkim. The number of drinkers has seen a jump from one in 300 to one in 20, meaning thereby that millions of people are addicted to alcohol. The intake of Indian Made Foreign Liquor (IMFL) has seen a considerable growth in India.
Work on the atlas has been on for the last three years by IAPA along with NIMHANS Bangalore, World Health Organisation, members of Commonwealth Medical Association and Indian Medical Association. "Such an effort was needed as the WHO has projected that 1.8 million deaths will occur globally due to the consumption of alcohol in a few years," said a senior IAPA official.
source - various news reports.