Continuing with its alleged policy of liberalisation in the liquor sector, Kerala’s CPI(M)-led lDF Government has brought down the distance limit from bars to places of worship and educational institutions to 50 meters from the existing 200 meters.
Marxist Excise Minister TP Ramakrishnan has justified the move by stating that the distance limit is being shrunk in order to solve the inconvenience being faced by tourists while Opposition parties have described it as a reflection of a pre-election deal between the Government and bar owners and as an indication of the cultural degradation of the Marxists.
As per an order issued by Tom Jose, Additional Chief Secretary in charge of the Excise Department, on August 29, the decision to shrink the distance limit from bars to places of worship and educational institutions would be applicable to the bars operating at hotels in the four-star, five-star and heritage categories.
At the same time, the distance limit between bars operating at three-star hotels and places of worship and schools would continue to be 200 meters. The distance limit was fixed as 200 meters in 2011 and Minister Ramakrishnan said what the Government had done now was only to restore the previous distance limit.
A recommendation for shrinking the distance limit had been there in the order the Government had issued earlier permitting bars at four-star hotels. But this relaxation had not been proposed in the case of the bars at five-star hotels. Also, the Excise Department had earlier given a recommendation to the Government for reduction in the distance limit.
It is said that pressures exerted by associations of bar owners were also behind the Government’s decision. Though it is not clear as to how many new bars would open in the State as per the new order, sources in the Excise Department put the number at around 100.
The Excise Minister said the amendment of the rule would be implemented at the earliest.
Since it assumed office in May, 2016, the lDF Government has been saying that it would change the liquor policy formulated by the former Congress-led UDF government by which all the bars in the State went out of operation by March 31, 2015 and which proposed closure of ten percent of all the retail booze outlets every year leading to total liquor eradication in ten years.
The lDF Government had started implementing its new liquor policy on July 1 last and 77 bars that were closed during the former UDF rule reopened that day in addition to permitting the bars at 30 five-star hotels and 24 elite clubs – that had not been closed even after implementation of the previous liquor policy – to continue operation.
However, the Supreme Court order that no liquor vending centers – bars, retails booze outlets or beer-wine parlors – should be allowed to operate within a distance of 500 meters from national and state highways had allegedly proved to be a big jolt to the lDF’s plan to allot bar licenses and open retails outlets liberally.
The Government had also been toying with the idea of de-notifying state highways so that 466 new liquor vending centers including bars and retails outlets could be opened. However, the recent order of the apex court bringing more clarity about its earlier order on roads passing through urban centers served as a shot in the arm for the Government.
Stating that the amendment of the rule concerning the bars’ distance limit was not against the law, Excise Minister TP Ramakrishnan said this was being done to help the tourism sector and tourists. “The Government has the authority to amend rules. The present amendment was brought in as per this authority,” he told the media.
Observers are of the opinion that Kerala is most likely to witness a fresh wave of anti-liquor agitations similar to those it had seen in 2014. Anti-liquor crusaders have already aired dissatisfaction about the Government’s decision for distance limit shrinkage and the Opposition, mainly the Congress, is certain to extend full support to them.
Former State Congress president VM Sudheeran described the Government decision as its Onam gift to bar owners and as a reflection of one of the biggest corruptions Kerala had seen, Ramesh Chennithala, leader of the Opposition, alleged that the new step was an expression of the left’s gratitude to the bar owners for the funds they had given it during the last election.