liquor consumers had to make do without their preferred brands during Holi celebration due to the long- standing absence of popular brands of hard liquor and Beer from the markets in Uttarakhand. State residents have been facing the same for the past six months. Branded liquor is being sold in the black and customers have to shell out twice or thrice the actual price.
However, liquor shop owners said that they are not getting branded liquors from the suppliers, resulting in loss of around 20 per cent of their income. During festival like Holi, when the sale of liquors generally soar by 50 per cent, they are incurring huge loss. Incidents of the disappointed customers picking up quarrels with the wine shop-owners are happening frequently.
A liquor trader at Survey Chowk said the supply of branded liquor that the customers demand are facing deficit. “Some of them return empty- handed while others, left with no other option, buy whatever is available reluctantly. This is sad that despite having got the license for liquor shop from the excise department, we are not getting adequate stock. This results in ours incurring losses for days on end,” he added.
Another liquor shop- owner based at Clock Tower said “We keep incurring loss of around 20 per cent on daily basis. Things are grimmer during Holi and other festivals.” Ramesh Bisht, resident of Raipur, said that the local residents have no option but to take locally made branded liquor.
Moreover, due to the inadequate supply of branded liquors to the State, it is being smuggled from the neighbouring States like Punjab and Haryana. This, despite police launching drives to stop illegal sale of liquor.
Recently STF Uttarakhand arrested two persons, native of Haryana, involved in supplying illegal IMF liquor in Uttarakhand from Haryana and seized 160 boxes of smuggled IMF liquor from their possession in Rishikesh. Moreover, STF Uttarakhand seized IMF liquors of 81 boxes, 177 boxes and 1050 bottles on December 17 and December 29 last year and January 15, 2016 respectively which were being supplied in Uttarakhand from Punjab.