MUMBAI: Expect beer bars and liquor shops along national and state highway stretches passing through municipal limits of Thane, Navi Mumbai, Panvel and Kalyan-Dombivili to reopen from Wednesday.
Following a Supreme Court verdict that it’s ban on liquor outlets along highways excluded all such bars and liquor shops that were under municipal corporation and council limits, the state excise ministry on Monday issued directives to the excise commissioner to start renewing licences of such outlets from Wednesday.
Barring Mumbai, around 14,000 bars and shops in all the cities and towns in the state were closed since April 1 after the SC ban to reduce growing highway mishaps following liquor consumption. “Guidelines have been issued today to all collectors by the excise commissioner. About 14,203 licence-holders have shut shops within municipal limits. Whoever applies for renewal fulfilling all formalities (fees and documents) will have licences renewed asap. Tomorrow is a dry day. So earliest will be from Wednesday,” said a state official.
This exclusion will not work in village panchayats as bars and shops along highways passing through villages will have to down shutters permanently. Thousands of outlets have lost huge business over five months and lakhs of youths their jobs.
