Thiruvananthapuram: Bars across Kerala will soon adopt the normal working hours which were in force prior to the COVID-19 outbreak. Their timing was restricted till 9 pm owing to curbs related to COVID-19 precautions. These restrictions will be lifted soon and the bars will be permitted to function till the old time of 11 pm.
The bar owners had met the Minister for Excise and complained about loss of revenue as the outlets are shut between 9 pm and 11 pm which are otherwise peak business hours. This is the time when the bars get majority of patrons.
Sanction of new bars to be delayed
The government is likely to partially incorporate in the new liquor policy the demand of bar owners to restrict the sanctioning of new bars considering the loss suffered by the existing ones.
Prior to the framing of the new liquor policy, the bar owners had demanded that in future bar licence should be sanctioned only for five-star hotels and hotels with more than 50 rooms.
The indiscriminate issuance of bar licences will destroy the business in the state and also impair the quality of service at hotels and other outlets vending liquor, they warned.
The bar owners also informed the government that they had suffered 40 percent loss in business last year.
However, the government is not keen to ban the opening of new three- and four-star hotels so that the tourism sector benefits. Instead, the government is planning to enforce a new condition by which licence will be granted to three-star hotels with a minimum of 30 rooms, four-star hotels with 40 rooms and five-star hotels with 50 rooms.
The new conditions would be applicable to those who are accorded licences from 2023. At the moment bar licence is given even to hotels with a minimum of 10 rooms.
New hotels under construction
At the same time 270 new hotels are under construction across Kerala with an eye on bar licences. They will have to make changes int the existing building construction plan.
Strict conditions for bars and wine parlours are unlikely considering their importance in the tourism sector.
Kerala currently has 670 liquor bars.
