Maharashtra has allowed home delivery of alcohol in areas other than the COVID-19 containment zones from May 15.

As per the guidelines issued by Excise Commissioner Kantilal Umap on Wednesday, the service is allowed only in those districts where liquor sale is permitted. Further, only wine and beer shops will be allowed to deliver at home — country liquor shops cannot do so.

The retailers will have to sell on MRP and cannot charge extra for home delivery. The customers can pay in cash or through debit or credit card.

The guidelines stipulated that the customer must be a permit holder to order alcohol. If the customer doesn’t have the permit then they can obtain it by applying on the State Excise Department website. Orders can be placed through WhatsApp, SMS, or by directly calling up the store.

The retailers will have to acquire passes for the delivery persons from the Excise Superintendent of Police or the Deputy Superintendent of Police. These officers have been instructed to issue valid ID cards for a limited period. The guidelines also said that one retailer can’t engage more than 10 people for home delivery service. One person can deliver only one order at a time and one delivery agent can’t supply more than 24 units per day.

The delivery agents should get medical certificates from doctors, wear masks, head caps and hand gloves, and use hand sanitisers while the retail shop owners should do thermal scanning of all agents, said the guidelines. The retailers shall also have to maintain a separate book to keep record of the liquor that have been delivered at home.