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Do se mera kya hoga? |
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By: Urvashi Seth |
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Date:
2010-02-06 |
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Place: Mumbai |
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The excise department warns wholesalers not to release 2-litre bottles of liquor in the market
After the recent notification from the excise department, restricting anyone from buying more than two bottles
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Cheers! Singer Abhijeet Bhattacharya at his bar. File Pic | of alcohol per week, now comes another one. The department has warned wholesalers not to release 2-litre bottles of liquor in the market.
Thanks to this notification, more than 1,000 Black Dog, Signature and Black Label bottles remain unsold in warehouses, resulting in a major loss to the liquor industry.
Business lost
An official from the United Spirits Ltd (USL), which makes popular brands Royal Challenge and Signature, said, "It's been almost two months since our liquor bottles have been lying in the warehouse. The excise department has not been able to say what we are going to do with these bottles if we can't release them. We have lost almost 10-20 per cent business because of this." The official revealed that
2-litre bottles are imported liquor and cost around Rs 5,000 each.
A wholesaler from Powai, who refused to be named, has over 400 bottles lying in his warehouse for the last two months. "We are waiting for a positive reply from the excise department. Most of our clients are 2-litre buyers, so we are suffering heavy losses."
Singer Abhijeet Bhattacharya fumed, "This is absurd. This way, people will be forced to use all illegal means to buy their favourite drink. I will still purchase the bigger bottles, and display them in my bar at home."
Rajesh Thukral, an Andheri resident, said, "I love collecting bigger bottles, even though I am not a habitual drinker, and Black Dog is one of the preferred brands. This new norm is ridiculous."
Drinking problem
12 Number of units (bottles) of alcohol that could be bought per week by a citizen before the two-bottle rule
150 Excise officers presently deployed to keep a watch on liquor sales at retail outlets in Mumbai
Did you know?
Average monthly consumption of liquor in the city stood at 10 lakh litres per month last year. After the excise department issued a notification that imposes a limit of 2-litre per person, per day, sales have dropped by 50,000 litres in the last one month
| Hazare effect? |
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According to sources, the government has ignored various appeals by officials and liquor vendors to revoke the notification, as it does not want to anger activist Anna Hazare. The rule was allegedly formulated due to pressure from Hazare. |
| The Other Side |
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"Wholesalers can sell the 2-litre bottles only for parties or banquets," confirmed the deputy superintendent of the state excise department.
"Talks are going on with senior government officials regarding the accounting process but they are unable to find a way out," said a source from the Excise department. | |
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