SC order leaves pubs along highways high and dry

States fear a loss of several thousand crores of rupees due to the ban on liquor vends

New Delhi/Mumbai, April 2: Thousands of watering holes, iconic clubs and swanky pubs went high and dry as authorities went full steam to enforce a Supreme Court order banning liquor sale along highways while states gauged revenue losses.

In Delhi, 100 restaurants, liquor vends and bars, including those in five star hotels, along the six national highways passing through the state stopped serving alcohol.

The state’s excise department is planning more action but is already flooded with representations from licence holders, who claim their outlets do not fall within the 500 metres range laid down by the apex court.

In neighbouring Noida, the number of vends no longer serving drinks was 42 while out of total 292 bars in Gurugram, the SC order would impact 106, officials said.

In Maharashtra, the

liquor ban on highways has affected at least 1,000 star hotels, the Indian Hotel And Restaurant Association chief Adarsh Shetty said.

The Maharashtra government expects it would lose an annual `7,000 crore, because of the ban. The state’s excise minister Chandrashekhar Bawankule has said that alternative ways to increase the revenue would be explored.

In Kerala, one of the highest liquor consuming states, 1,956 liquor bars and toddy shops have been affected. These include outlets run by the Beverages Corporation and Consumerfed, 11 bars in five star hotels, bars in 18 clubs, 586 beer wine parlours and 1,132 toddy shops which have been told to stop serving liquor.

In Chennai, over 35 star category hotels serving liquor in and around the city and around 250 elsewhere in Tamil Nadu would be affected, it is estimated.

Puducherry PWD minister A. Namassivayam said that the overall revenue loss to the Union Territory is expected to be around `60 crore.

In Karnataka, the state’s Wine Merchants Association is considering meeting Karnataka chief minister Siddaramaiah with a representation to denotify state highways.

In Goa, some 30 per cent of liquor outlets have shut down following the Supreme Court order.

The Supreme Court has in an order said liquor vends in 500m of national and state highways will have to shut down from April 1.