CCTVs now compulsory at places serving liquor, excise dept to monitor them

The department has also formed a five-member team which is working on resolution cameras with artificial intelligence (AI) that will be installed on the counters to determine the age of a person from their face

MUMBAI: In the wake of the recent Worli BMW hit-and-run case in Mumbai and the Pune Porsche crash in May, the state excise department has started a special drive, making it compulsory for CCTV cameras to be installed on the main counters in all restaurants, bars and pubs. The cameras will be controlled by excise officials to monitor any irregularity.

(Shutterstock)

The department has also formed a five-member team which is working on resolution cameras with artificial intelligence (AI) that will be installed on the counters to determine the age of a person from their face. The AI camera will detect persons below 21 years, and the excise official monitoring the CCTV footage will get a notification on their mobile phone. “All these systems will prevent mishaps,” said a senior excise official. “Bar owners and managers will also be alerted with a notification, and will think twice before allowing minors to consume alcohol, as they will be held responsible with direct evidence.”

Prasad Surve, director of the state excise department, said that the department would now control the cameras of around 2,000 bars, restaurants and pubs in Mumbai. “The rules mandate that only people above 21 can enter a bar,” he said. “Hard drinks are forbidden to be served to those between 21 and 25, and they can consume only mild beer or mild wine that contain less than five per cent of alcohol.”

Early on May 19, a Porsche car, allegedly driven by a 17-year-old boy under the influence of alcohol, fatally struck two motorbike-riding software engineers in Kalyani Nagar, Pune. Last Sunday, a BMW car allegedly driven by Mihir Shah, the son of a Shiv Sena (Shinde faction) leader, rammed a two-wheeler in Worli in Mumbai. A woman died in the crash after being dragged by the BMW for over 1.5 kilometres.

“After the Pune crash, we launched a special campaign and have made it mandatory to install CCTV cameras in the permit room and bar counter in all bars and pubs,” added Surve. The excise official posted in the area will get access to the camera by taking the email ID and password from the bar owners and will monitor it.”

In the last month and a half, the excise department has checked the licences of 23,690 restaurants and bars in the state. Of these, 796 were found to have flaws, and action has been taken against them. For instance, 83 hotels were violating the official timings, and action was taken against 31 hotels where people were being allowed to consume alcohol without a permit. The licenses of 154 hotels were suspended for 10 days, and the licenses of 80 bars, pubs and orchestras have been cancelled in Pune after the crash.

In Mumbai, several teams of the excise department inspected 1,034 bars and pubs. Action was taken against 39 hotels which were not following the norms and nine licenses were suspended. In the Mumbai suburbs, 1,572 bars and pubs were inspected, and action was taken against 89. Most of them were found to be in violation of timings, said Surve, adding that many people were also consuming liquor without a permit. “We have now made it compulsory for drinkers to take a permit of ₹5 for 24 hours,” he said.