Noida: Beer lovers in Uttar Pradesh’s Noida will no longer have to take a trip to New Delhi or Gurgaon to enjoy a pint of freshly brewed beer. Yes, after a long wait, two microbreweries are set to open in the state by the end of this month–one at Gardens Galleria Mall and the other one in a restaurant in Sector 63.
The development comes after the owners of Ministry of Sound and The Yellow Chilli have been granted MB5 licences, which will allow them to operate microbreweries on their premises, according to The Times of India. Elated at getting the license, the two restaurants are hopeful that it will attract more young customers and increase sales.
Virendra Kumar Singhal, the director of the company that operates Ministry of Sound, told TOI, “We were initially sceptical about opening the brewery. But business has picked up over the past three months. Establishing the infrastructure to run a brewery requires huge money, but it will also generate a lot of traction in the market. In a month, we should be ready to welcome beer lovers.”
In June 2019, the UP government had given nod to hotels, pubs and resorts for setting up microbrewery with an aim to boost tourism and employment opportunities in the state. The first microbreweries came up in Agra and Ghaziabad, but Noida was still lagging behind in the race, apparently because setting up a microbrewery is a costly deal in addition to the slow paperwork.
As per revised rules, any restaurant or a hotel intending to install a micro-brewery and will now have to pay around Rs 2.5 lakhs annually instead of Rs 25000. The license can be renewed by paying around Rs 2 lakh.
Meanwhile, Delhi, Haryana, Telangana, Maharashtra and some other states already have policies for operating microbreweries in their cities.