Highway liquor ban leaves big, fat Punjabi weddings high and dry
does road safety have to do with the big, fat Punjabi wedding?
A lot, as the recent Supreme Court order banning serving of liquor within 500 metres of highways to clamp down on drunk driving has literally left marriage palaces in Punjab high and dry.
The scale of Punjabi weddings is grand enough to require venues that resemble palaces. Located along highways on the outskirts of cities across the state, the focus at the wedding celebrations is on drinking, dining and dancing.
Marriage palace owners say bookings are drying up, affecting business at 70% at such venues.
Rajeev Chhabra of AKM Resorts in Zirakpur on the Chandigarh-Patiala highway says an estimated 2,500 of the 3,500 marriage palaces in Punjab are located within 500 metres of a state or national highway. “At least 70% of marriage palaces in Punjab have been affected by the court order. Those who have wedding functions planned have put bookings at these venues on hold. We have no bookings after May,” says Chhabra. It doesn’t help that he went in for a glitzy makeover of the venue. “
Customers are making frantic enquiries at different places for
BUSINESS IN 27 STAR HOTELS AND 269 BARS AND PUBS
HAS SUFFERED
arrangements. Serving liquor to guests is the major concern,” he says.
Punjab additional excise and taxation commissioner Gurtej Singh says business in 27 star hotels and 269 bars and pubs across the state has suffered due to the ban on serving liquor near highways. “We have counted 1,000 marriage palaces where business has been affected. The number of such wedding venues is rising by the day as more and more owners are getting in touch with us,” he says.
The excise department used to earn ₹800 crore to ₹900 crore annually from the sale of liquor in bars, hotels and marriage palaces.
“The department will lose out on this earning this year,” he says.