PANJIM: With exactly a month left to implement the Supreme Court (SC) verdict banning the sale of liquor along highways, alcohol sellers have the alternative of approaching the local authorities seeking the transfer of their existing licenses beyond 500 metres of the highway.
“We had applications from certain retail/wholesale outlets requesting to transfer the license, approvals of which were granted after thorough scrutiny. No such request from any owners of liquor selling/serving outlets has come to us after the SC order,” Excise Commissioner Menino D’Souza told Herald. He, however, did not rule out the possibility of receiving proposals from a few liquor businessmen for transfer of license.
The Commissioner asserted that earlier requests to relocate alcohol establishments were not only from those located on the highways.
The Excise Department is now gearing up to enforce the SC directives wherein the State cannot renew licenses of wine shops, outlets and bars located within 500 meters of the national and State highways.
As per the survey till date, around 2,775 alcohol retail, wholesale shops and bars come under the purview of the apex court’s order.
However, only the Pernem and Sattari taluka-level teams have completed their surveys, separate reports of which were submitted on Tuesday. The two talukas have recorded 147 and 88 premises respectively along highways. Assistant Commissioner of Excise Satyawan Bhivshet said they expect the remaining teams to furnish their reports by Wednesday or Thursday.
The Department had asked the taluka-wise teams to complete their task by February 28 in a bid to expedite the process to issue show cause notices to the shop owners. “The respondents will be given a chance to present their say during the hearing. We are speeding up the process to meet the deadline,” the commissioner said.
