PARTY TIME FOR BANGALOREANS

PARTY TIME FOR BANGALOREANS
Keeping the spirit(s) up
Deccan HErald

The bundh could not douse their spirit. Bangaloreans bought their stock of liquor on Tuesday before the retail wine shops downed their shutters.

The bundh could not douse their spirit. Bangaloreans bought their stock of liquor on Tuesday before the retail wine shops downed their shutters.

Sources in the Excise department said retail sales went up by 20 per cent on Tuesday. But the losses incurred by the department are huge.

“State-wide we may have incurred a loss of Rs nine crore on one single day, out of which Rs three crore was from Bangalore alone,’ said an Excise officer. Another officer explained that the department has a target to sell 12.5 lakh cases a month. On an average, one case costs between Rs 1,600 to Rs 1,700. The State Excise budget for 2006-07 is Rs 4,200 crore as against Rs 3,500 crore last year.


Deccan Herald spoke to some wine retail outlets in the City to find out the impact of the bundh on liquor sales. “We were not much affected by the bundh. Our customers bought additional liquor on Tuesday,” said a retail wine seller. He added that on occasions like this and October 2, they individually inform their regular customers of the closure so that they pick up their stock in advance.

“Though we opened our store after 6 pm, our sales were hit by 30 per cent. It was a double loss, after the mandatory closure on October 2,” said a retail wine selller.

The bundh did not hit the pub City. “Though we are open from 12 noon to 11.30 pm, we actually do business only in the evening. It was a usual day for us on Wednesday, after an initial hiccup,” said a pub owner.