The State Government on Saturday allowed home delivery of liquor from Sunday. At the same time, it imposed a ‘special Covid fee’ of 50% on the MRP of alcohol.
“The Odisha Government has decided to allow home delivery of liquor from the existing On and Off shops of Indian Made Foreign Liquor (IMFL) and beer situated in the areas other than containment zones and shopping malls by amending the relevant provisions under the Excise Rules, 2017,” a notification by the Excise Department stated.
There would be no counter sale of liquor by the excise licensees now, the notification read.
A customer would have to shell out extra 50% for purchasing liquor as the State Government has imposed the ‘special Covid fee” by amending the relevant rules and increased the MRPs of all types of foreign liquor and beer by 50% of the MRPs prevailing during 2019-20.
The additional revenue would go towards meeting the expenses being incurred by the Government in the treatment of coronavirus patients and other related activities.
As per the decision, the home delivery of liquor can be undertaken by retailers directly and also through reputed food aggregators, standard technology platforms, delivery service providers acting as retail aggregators.
The Excise Department categorically instructed the On and Off shop licensees to display their phone, mobile and WhatsApp numbers, email IDs, UPI details for receiving the orders and facilitating digital payments outside their shop.
The district-wise list of On/Off shop licensees along with their details would be uploaded on the Odisha State Beverages Corporation (OSBC) website (osbc.co.in).
The product-wise latest MRPs would also be displayed on the website. The retailers can receive orders for home delivery of liquor over phone or through SMS, WhatsApp and email.
Strict instructions were issued to retailers to ensure that there is no crowding in front of their shops.
The home delivery charge is Rs 100 for orders up to Rs 1,000 and thereafter Rs 25 for every additional Rs 500-order value. In no case, the delivery charge would exceed Rs 300. The aggregators can fix their own rates subject to the ceiling. Normal timing for home delivery would be between 7 am and 6 pm. Orders are expected to be delivered within six hours.
The retailers and other agencies involved in home delivery have to abide by the legal provisions of maximum quantity of liquor, which can be transported in each delivery.
The retailers and the aggregators should abide by the MRP notification issued by the OSBC from time to time, failing which appropriate legal action would be initiated, the notification stated.