COIMBATORE: Thudiyalur police had a tough time controlling a 17-year-old girl, who caused a flutter in an inebriated condition, before handing her over to her parents on Tuesday.
According to sources, the girl, a class 12 student, landed up at a shopping mall instead of attending school on Tuesday morning. It is unclear as to how she managed to get her hands on liquor, which she mixed with some soft drinks and began consuming. When the girl’s friends called her, they sensed she was in an intoxicated condition and rushed to the mall to take her home. One of the girl’s friends took her on his two-wheeler and while the duo was near Thudiyalur, she fell down.
Luckily, the vehicle was moving at a slow speed and she escaped injuries. Passers-by tried to help the girl but she verbally abused and attacked them.
Following this Thudiyalur police was informed who rushed to the spot and tried to control her. Subsequently, they called the girl’s parents and sent her home in a car. Police said the girl’s friends had revealed that she was having problems with a male classmate, which led her to consume alcohol. But police could not independently verify if the girl was in an inebriated condition, as they did not test her blood alcohol content.
Commenting on the incident, activist and lawyer Sudha Ramalingam lamented that since cultural mores of society were changing, drinking has become more acceptable and liquor consumption is becoming more prevalent among youth and even children. The only way to battle alcoholism in young adults is through imparting value-based education right at the school level, she added.