Delhi Govt-Appointed Panel Recommends Lowering Legal Age for Drinking Liquor to 21, Reducing Number of Dry Days
Apart from recommending the lowering of drinking legal age, the panel also suggested the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP)-led government to reduce the number of dry days around the year. The dry days - when liquor sale is banned - should be restricted to January 26 (Republic Day), August 15 (Independence Day) and October 2 (Gandhi Jayanti).
New Delhi, December 30: A panel appointed by the Delhi government has recommended the lowering of legal age for drinking liquor to 21. The committee was formed in September this year by Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia to seek advice on how the government should rejig its policies relating to alcohol consumption.
Apart from recommending the lowering of drinking legal age, the panel also suggested the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP)-led government to reduce the number of dry days around the year. The dry days - when liquor sale is banned - should be restricted to January 26 (Republic Day), August 15 (Independence Day) and October 2 (Gandhi Jayanti). New Year's Eve 2020: Liquor Sale in Telangana Permitted Till Midnight, Licensed Bars Allowed to Serve Alcohol Till 1 AM.
The committee, among other recommendations, has also asked the government to allow departmental stores to sell soft liquor, such as beers and wines. The government has currently allowed 125 departmental stores to sell the same, but the liquor products should not occupy more than 10 percent of the total floor area.
The Arvind Kejriwal-led government was also suggested to evenly place the 864 liquor stores operated by government agencies in Delhi. At present, they are reportedly not evenly distributed in all 272 municipal wards and NDMC areas.
The sale of liquor is also one of the factors driving the government's revenue. It was also considered as one of the reasons behind the massive dip in state income during the months when a total lockdown was imposed in Delhi-NCR to curb COVID-19 transmission.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Dec 30, 2020 10:21 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).