This minister wants to promote beer as a ‘health drink’; cites several health benefits

Beer is the third most popular drink in the world after water and tea. A pint of beer is refreshing and if consumed in moderation, beer does provide minerals and antioxidants to the body.

However, Andhra Pradesh Excise Minister Kothapalli Samuel Jawahar has attracted much flak for his statement that beer is a health drink. The controversy was created when in an interview with a local TV channel, the minister said that the state government is planning to promote beer as a health drink. The video of the interview has gone viral.

The opposition party YSR Congress MLA RK Roja quipped that if beer is a health drink then why isn’t the government selling it in medical shops and distributing it as a nutritional supplement.

Opposition parties have not taken the statement lightly and have said that the government is only interested in generating revenue from liquor, and is not at all concerned about the well-being of the people. Andhra Pradesh has the highest per capita consumption of beer in India.

Andhra Pradesh State Excise Minister Jowahar stating that beer is a health drink is audacious shows the priorities of the government.

— Ashish Vivek Merukar (@AMerukar) July 4, 2017

Andhra Minister says Beer is health drink. Who is their script writer…. God bless you.

— krishna ts (@krishnakondle) July 5, 2017

Politics and the pros and cons of beer drinking aside, we are damn sure that all the beer guzzlers in India will raise a toast to the Andhra minister while sipping their favorite health drink manufactured by Carlsberg, SabMiller, and Heineken.

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