In a bid to curb drunken driving in the city, the Union Territory of Chandigarh administration has asked pubs and bars to install breathalyser to ensure alcohol intake “within legal limits”.
The excise and taxation department has also asked restaurants and hotels serving liquor to ensure that the customers alcohol intake was “within legal limits”.
“In order to make people aware about the ill-effects of consumption of alcohol more than the legally prescribed limit and to restrict them to intake alcohol within the legal limits, you are hereby directed to install alcohol breath analysers in your licenced premises within seven days from the issuance of this letter," according to an order issued by the Chandigarh excise and taxation department on Wednesday.
They have also been asked "to ensure that the consumption of alcoholic products by customers is within the legal limits" and submit compliance report to the department by September 13.
For driving purpose, the permissible limit of alcohol in blood is 30 mg per 100 ml.
Owners of restaurants and bars have welcomed the move, saying this step would help check drunken driving. However, some of the shop owners asked how could they ensure their customers take alcohol within the permissible limitsIJ
"Installing breathalyser is a positive move. But we cannot do policing. How can we stop a customer from drinking more than the permissible limit for driving purposeIJ" asked a city-based restaurant owner.
"We can just guide them to hire a taxi for home if they are drunk beyond permissible limits, but in no way we can force them to drink within limits. We can only intervene if a customer is creating nuisance, but it is up to him to decide about the intake of his drink," said another owner.
There are more than 100 pubs, bars, hotels and restaurants which serve liquor in Chandigarh.