Administrations of Solapur, Aurangabad, Jalna,Buldhana and Amravati districts have issued instructions thatliquor shops will not be allowed to open.
"The decision is taken in adherence to the DisasterManagement Act, and to prevent any further spread of thecoronavirus infection," a collector from one of thesedistricts told on Monday.
The Buldhana and Amravati administrations have alsodecided to continue with prohibition on liquor sale till May17 and only allow sale of essential commodities, sources said.
Besides, several liquor manufacturing and bottlingunits located in Aurangabad can resume production, but thedistrict administration has prohibited its sale.
The Nagpur civic body has also decided not to allowliquor sale in the city municipal limits, a senior districtofficial said.
It is the civic body's decision and there are "no suchinstructions from the Nagpur district collector, which wouldmean liquor sale is prohibited in the city limits but allowedin rural areas," he said.
Liquor is a major source of revenue for Maharashtra,which earned about Rs 45,000 crore in the form of taxes on itin 2019-20, an official from state excise department said. NDGK GK