The Uttar Pradesh cabinet on Saturday, cleared the UP Excise (Settlement of Licenses for Premium Retail Vends of Foreign Liquor) Rules 2020, permitting the sale of premium liquors, wines and beers in malls across the state. This step however comes with certain terms and conditions and was undertaken by the authorities, as a measure to bolster the revenue in the state which stems from the the sale of alcohol. Earlier, the practise of selling liquor was permitted in only stand-alone retail and model shops.
No alcohol on-premises of the Malls
The UP cabinet has approved the sale of certain categories of liquor, including imported foreign liquor brands, IMFL brands of scotch or above category, all sorts of brandy, gin and wine as well. Brands of vodka and rum marked at ₹700 and above, beer brands that charge ₹160 per can of 500 ml or equivalent, will also be allowed. However, the consumption of these in the shop or mall premises is strictly prohibited. This move will also let women purchase alcohol in a safe environment, without any hesitations.
The licensing fee and process have been set up by the Excise Department and will be put into action from July 27. Upon the completion of all formalities, licenses to start liquor store(s), in addition to the already existing shops, will be issued as soon as August 27. The Principle Secretary of the Excise Department stated that these licenses will be granted in the form of FL-4-C and can be obtained by any eligible person, company, partnership firm, proprietary firm, or society. The government has also lowered the permissible loss in re-distillation of liquor from 2-2.5% to 0.5-1% as of now. These shops need to display all the brands on their shelves in a planned manner and they also need to be air-conditioned.
Annual licence fee has been fixed at 12 lakhs
This reform is aligned with certain terms which have been listed out by the state, for the malls that wish to house these alcohol kiosks and stores that wish to begin retail of liquor. Malls with a minimum plinth area of 10,000 sq ft., departmental stores, supermarkets, or hybrid hypermarkets are entitled to accommodate alcohol shops in addition to the other stores. On the other hand, these kiosks should have at least 500 sq. ft. of carpet area and there must be a walking space inside the shops for customers.
