Uttarakhand high court directs government to ensure all liquor shops, bars have CCTV cameras

The directions came as the court was hearing a contempt petition filed in July about the government’s non-compliance with its August 2019 order regarding installation

Updated on: Nov 6, 2020, 12:36:51 IST

Hindustan Times, Dehradun | By Neeraj Santoshi

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The Uttarakhand high court on Thursday directed the state government to ensure the installation of CCTV cameras with IP addresses at all liquors retail shops, bars, wholesale outlets within a month, and submit a compliance report. The directions came as the court was hearing a contempt petition filed in July about the government’s non-compliance with its August 2019 order regarding installation.

The government on Thursday told the court that CCTV cameras with IP addresses have been set up at 110 of 553 retail outlets in the state and that a control room has been set up at the office of the excise commissioner in this regard. It added CCTV cameras of 10 out of 251 bars have been connected with the control room.

The court ordered the installation of CCTV cameras after lawyer DK Joshi, who has been working for the prohibition, filed public interest litigation in 2018 seeking directions for a need to discourage liquor consumption.

Joshi said the court ordered the CCTV cameras’ installation at liquor shops and bars to ensure alcohol is not sold to people under 21.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Neeraj Santoshi
Neeraj Santoshi is the Chief of Bureau for Hindustan Times in Uttarakhand, where he leads the state reporting team while covering government, politics, environment, wildlife, Uttarakhand High Court, and issues shaping the Himalayan region. With more than two decades in journalism across conflict zones, he has covered politically sensitive regions and environmentally fragile landscapes, and focused on stories that combine public interest with in-depth storytelling. An alumnus of Pune University with a Master’s in Communication Studies, he has reported extensively from Jammu & Kashmir (2003-2010), Madhya Pradesh (2010 to 2018 ) and Uttarakhand (Since 2018), covering subjects ranging from insurgency, elections and governance to wildlife conservation, mining, climate change, agriculture, human rights and social justice. He has covered politics and legislative assemblies of both Jammu & Kashmir and Madhya Pradesh over more than a decade. Before taking over as Chief of Bureau in Uttarakhand, he served as Special Correspondent with Hindustan Times in Madhya Pradesh and earlier reported for both Hindustan Times and The Indian Express in Jammu & Kashmir, where he covered state politics, environment and insurgency-related developments. Over the years, his stories have focused on environmental degradation, wildlife, illegal mining, governance and the changing social fabric of Himalayan states and Central India. He is particularly interested in long-form explanatory journalism, and stories that explore the intersection of ecology, conservation, governance and society. Outside the newsroom, Neeraj enjoys reading widely on neuroscience, consciousness studies, Artificial Intelligence and quantum physics, with a special interest in Kashmiri Tantric Shaivist traditions. He is also passionate about wildlife, mountaineering and the Himalayas, interests that continue to inform his reporting and deepen his understanding of the region he covers.Read More

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