On July 26, Vitebsk /Olga Bogacheva - BELTA/. Cheap wine will disappear from sale in the Vitebsk region during the harvest period. This instruction was given today at a meeting of the Vitebsk Regional Executive Committee by its Chairman, Alexander Kosinets, when considering the issue of compliance with the requirements of Directive No. 1 "On measures to ensure public safety and discipline" in terms of the implementation of labor legislation, labor protection and additional measures to ensure the safety of life in hazardous industries of the national economy, a BELTA correspondent reports. The decision is due to low production discipline, closely related to alcohol consumption at the workplace, and a proportionally high level of fatalities and severe injuries. The fact that 728 employees (including 2 managers and 31 officials) have been dismissed since the beginning of the year for being at work in a state of alcoholic intoxication, and six cases of severe occupational injuries, or 14% of their total number, occurred with employees in a state of alcoholic intoxication, also influenced its adoption. For example, a raw material loader at the Sennensky Flax Mill received a severe hand injury after leaning on switched-on equipment while consuming alcohol at the workplace. Egregious confirmation of the lack of control in this matter are the cases of death of an employee of DSU No. 63 of the Tolochin district under the wheels of a loader as a result of an attempted theft of diesel fuel and the death of a tractor driver-machinist of OJSC "Danukalovo-Agro" of the Liozno district due to falling into a manure removal conveyor chute in a state of severe alcoholic intoxication. According to Alexander Kosinets, the absence of cheap fruit and berry wines on sale during the harvest period will help to influence the situation. "Let only alcoholic beverages of a more expensive price segment remain on the shelves," said the governor, recalling the region's plans to cease the production of single fruit and berry wines: this year their production should decrease by 15%, and in 2013 it should be completely stopped. -0-

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