Haryana shuts all liquor shops across state till further orders

The Haryana government on Thursday decided to temporarily shut down all the liquor vends across the state till further orders as part of its preventive measures

The Haryana government on Thursday decided to temporarily shut down all the liquor vends across the state till further orders as part of its preventive measures to curb the spread of Covid-19 outbreak, said officials.

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The decision was taken after deputy chief minister Dushyant Chautala, who also holds the portfolios of excise and taxation, held a video conference with all the deputy excise and taxation commissioners (DETCs) of the state and ordered them to get the vends shut by Thursday midnight.

There are 249 liquor vends in Gurugram, which remained open even as malls and other non-essential stores were shut to contain the spread of coronavirus, said the officials.

The officials said outlets across the state selling both countrymade and Indian made foreign liquor (IMFL) will remain shut from March 27 till further orders. A major chunk of state’s revenue comes in the form of excise duty, which was ₹6,600 crore last year.

All liquor godowns in the city will also remain shut, the officials said, adding that there has been a major dip in the sale of liquor in the last week. The department has received a revenue of ₹20,000 per day from these liquor vends since Sunday, whereas daily revenue used to be ₹5 lakh from the city.

H C Dahiya, deputy excise and taxation commissioner (west), said the order issued to all the DETCs also mentioned that teams would be formed to check the closure of liquor vends and if anyone found violating the orders, strict action will be taken against the owner. “We have formed teams who will conduct surprise checks across the district to ensure there is no violation of the orders,” he said.

Another official in the department, who did not wish to be named, said the action was taken after a few men called police in an inebriated state and said they are tested positive for coronavirus.

“The closure order was issued keeping in mind the safety of public health and to ensure social distancing. Though we did not receive any complaints, we want to take precautionary measures in the wake of coronavirus,” Chautala said.

The deputy CM said he has also asked officials to check stock in the shops selling essential goods and to ensure there is no shortage in the state.