Highway liquor ban News

In March, the Supreme Court had banned sale of liquor within 500 metres of state and national highways including in bars, pubs and restaurants.

After Supreme Court's refusal to allow liquor vends within 500 metres of national and state highways to sell liquor, the Gujarat Co-operative Milk Marketing Federation Ltd (Amul) has now come up with a unique solution to help thousands of highway liquor shop owners who are likely to be affected by it.

The issue of liquor being sold on national and state highways was first brought to the Supreme Court's notice by this Chandigarh-based man.

The now deemed illegal liquor outlets, located less than 500 metres from national highways in Goa have downed their shutters following the Supreme Court order, hopes of about 1,000 liquor outlet owners now hinge on an assurance given by Chief Minister Minister Manohar Parrikar to bail them out.

"We are planning to meet the tourism minster to apprise him of the enormous losses to both states and to the industry," NRAI President Riyaaz Amlani told PTI.

District Excise Department here on Saturday sealed 46 liquor vends along the national highways.

Owners of liquor shops in Karnataka, who were waiting for the Supreme Court's direction, heaved a sigh of relief after learning that they had time till September 30 to relocate if they received a notice from the authorities.

The order means that the licenses of liquor outlets which fall in the red zone will not be renewed after March 31.