Liquor crisis in Capital hits wedding season
NEW DELHI: People hosting weddings said they were facing problems in procuring alcohol, or even finding vends in their localities for bulk orders, as the liquor business in the city is in a transition phase in the wake of a new excise policy that kicked in last week.
According to rough estimates, about 100 of the planned 850 liquor shops have opened so far, with the others either being renovated or awaiting supplies.
While many residents were able to procure liquor for personal consumption from the neighbouring Gurugram and Noida, families hosting weddings and banquets during this period faced problems.
The Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) has estimated that over 150,000 weddings will be held in Delhi this season ( from November to March) and they are expected to bring in a business of about ₹50,000 crore. On Sunday alone, there were around 8,000 weddings in the Capital, CAIT said.
The government quit the retail liquor business, with nearly 600 government-run liquor vends shutting shop last Tuesday, to make way for 850 privately run liquor vends that will be spacious, air-conditioned and well-lit -hailed by experts as a muchneeded reform to improve user experience and enhance excise revenue for the state.
Akash Tyagi, an auditor at a consultancy firm, said the bar counter at friend’s wedding was reduced to a few bottles in a car as they could not find liquor in large quantities anywhere in the city. People also suggested that the government should put up the list of new liquor shops in Delhi, along with addresses and contact numbers, on the excise department’s website for public convenience.
“Banquet hall managers say the rules have changed and so they cannot arrange it for us. So we reached out to the excise department for a licence. They were helpful and explained to us the new charges. But, they could not guarantee us availability of liquor as the entire system has now been privatised,” said Tyagi.
“The problem is that if anyone buys a licence to serve liquor on private premises or in a banquet hall, the alcohol also has to be purchased from Delhi, which is facing a shortage,” he said.
Monu Bansal, manager of four shops that have come up in east Delhi’s Star City and Galleria malls, said the supply is limited at the moment.
“We opened our shop three days ago, but sales are low because supplies are not arriving sufficiently,” he said.
Those in the retail business also said there is confusion among stores about whether the legal drinking age in Delhi has been reduced to 21 from 25 years. A few shops in malls even put up posters saying “liquor not allowed below 21 years of age”.
But the legal age to be served or sold liquor in Delhi is still 25 years and above.
Deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia announced in March that the government has decided to reduce age bar in the new policy.
DEPUTY CM MANISH SISODIA ANNOUNCED IN MARCH THAT THE GOVERNMENT HAS DECIDED TO REDUCE AGE BAR IN THE NEW POLICY