Liquor shops may soon be open throughout the week in West Bengal

KOLKATA: The excise directorate is set to grant permission to Bengal liquor shop owners to keep their stores open all days of the week, granting them freedom from the one-day-per-week enforced shutdown rule that’s currently followed.
Until the order is formally issued, liquor shops can remain open for a maximum of six days a week. They have to remain shut one day of the week, though it can be a day of the owner’s choosing.Previously, the rule was that all liquor stores had to remain closed on Thursdays.
An excise directorate official said the rule was framed after retailers kept seeking permission to keep shops open on ‘dry’ days, particularly during festive season. This year, Kali Puja and Diwali were on a Sunday. Many shops that remain closed on that day sought permission to stay open, as there is additional demand for liquor during both festivals.
Shop-owners welcome excise move
An excise directorate official said: “It was then felt that retailers should be granted the right to keep shops open throughout the week, provided employees’ rights are maintained.” “Revenue is certainly a factor. In 2018-’19, the directorate’s revenue receipt went up to Rs 10,590 crore from Rs 9,340 crore the previous year. We also want to keep people from consuming spurious liquor. On ‘dry’ days, many people tend to purchase liquor in black from illegal outlets. Much of this liquor is spurious.”
Shop-owners welcomed the move. “We may now apply to the excise directorate to keep our shops open on all days except the stipulated ‘dry’ ones, such as Republic Day, Independence Day and Gandhi Jayanti. In 2018, the state government had notified that shops and establishments may remain open seven days a week, provided workers are granted their right to a weekly off. Few were sure, however, whether that rule extended to liquor shops also,” a liquor shop owner said.
There was, however, some confusion too. “There is a lot of confusion,” said a retailer in central Kolkata. “We have just heard that the excise directorate has planned something of this kind, but have received no notice.”