Nine years after imposing a statewide alcohol ban to curb addiction, domestic violence, and financial ruin among its poorest families, Bihar - India's poorest state - still struggles to gauge the policy's effectiveness.
The gaps in implementation became glaring as the BBC shadowed Bihar officials in a misty October morning raid on bootleggers.
Armed excise officers, with a sniffer dog, sped across the Ganges on a boat to raid an illegal distillery.
On reaching the outskirts of the capital, Patna, the team found a ramshackle setup of a dozen metal drums - part of a makeshift apparatus fermenting jaggery, a type of cane sugar, into country liquor.
Despite these enforcement gaps, alcohol prohibition remains firmly in place in Bihar. Passed in 2016, the law was among the factors that helped the ruling party clinch a decisive state election victory earlier this month.
State officials tout the policy's success by pointing to big numbers: 1.1 million cases registered and 650,000 people convicted for violations since the law took effect. However, more than 99% of these convictions are for consumption rather than production, selling, or transport of illicit liquor.
Local police attribute the continuing challenge of enforcement to a combination of factors, including staffing shortages, sophisticated smuggling methods, and possible collusion between liquor makers and authorities.
Women like Lalmunni Devi, who lost her husband to alcohol, believe the ban should continue despite its enforcement challenges. Experts acknowledge that while prohibition has led to improvements in household finances, illegal trade persists. The question remains whether Bihar's prohibition has merely shifted the problem underground.
