Excise crackdown on bars for charging more for liquor

KOCHI: The excise department has launched a drive to check the bars in the city following complaints that some of them are charging more for bottles of liquor and also refusing to give bills. Excise officials said they have received complaints that a few bars, cashing in on the huge demand for liquor during the Onam holidays, was charging additional Rs 50 to Rs 100 per bottle and also refusing to give bill. The officials also said they will take action against the bars which sell liquor after 7pm.

“Fearing another lockdown after Onam, some bars are trying to sell all their stock by remaining open even after the prescribed working hours,” said an officer. Excise joint commissioner P K Sanu said they had already registered cases against a few bars in the city for overpricing. “We will be conducting checks in the coming days. Strict directive has been issued to all bars to collect only the prescribed amount from the people,” he said.

A bar owner, however, said they weren’t flouting any rules. “The government has ignored the bars which are severely affected by the pandemic restrictions. We incur a lot of maintenance costs and have to pay salaries to the employees,” he said.