The Delhi government has decided to extend the excise licence of liquor shops, bars, clubs and other establishments for two more months, until May 31. According to a senior official from the Excise department, the extension has been given to provide some relief to the liquor shop vendors and businesses that faced loss due to Covid restrictions. "Under the new excise policy, the licence was given to vendors from November to March. But, as the liquor shops were closed due to Covid restrictions and suffered losses, we have decided to extend the time period till May 31. After that, those who want to get their licences renewed can apply afresh,” said the official. Covid restrictions such as weekend curfew, odd-even at markets and early closure of shops had particularly hit the liquor business. Meanwhile, a day after the Excise department put a stop on discounts, rebates and buy-one-get-one offers on alcohol, liquor shops across the city wore a relatively deserted look. After witnessing large gatherings and long queues outside shops, the Excise department had Monday directed all L72 shops to discontinue the discounts, offers and rebates. It also said that such overcrowding creates law and order problems. With MCD polls round the corner, the opposition BJP and Congress have targeted the ruling AAP government over its new liquor policy. When The Indian Express visited wine and beer shops at several locations such as Okhla NSIC, Nehru Place, INA, Kamal Cinema, Safdarjung Enclave, Bhikaji Cama Place and Sarojini Nagar, it found that the queues outside such shops had thinned with the discontinuation of discounts and offers. At some shops, staff were seen playing ludo and video games on their phones or chatting outside the shops. "After this ban, we lost about 40-45% of our customers in just one day. In our shops, we were giving two plus one offer, so the crowd was less as compared to shops that gave one plus one. But customers used to come even early in the morning and business was good. Now even during evening peak hours, there is no rush," said Pawan Singh, manager at INA’s wine and beer shop. At the wine and beer shops at Kamal Cinema, Safdarjung Enclave, Shivam, a staffer, said: "People from as far as Gurgaon, Noida, Ghaziabad, Faridabad came to buy liquor here. Yes, it was difficult to handle the crowd. But today, there are hardly 20 customers.” At the shop in South Square mall at Sarojini Nagar, customers could be seen asking for offers and discounts. One staffer said: "I am happy things are getting back to normal. Earlier we were not even getting time to have lunch, plus the reduction in dry days meant we had fewer offs.” The new liquor policy came into effect in November 2021. There are currently 510 liquor shops in the capital.
