Soon, country liquor at Mumbai bars?

Mumbai: Sipping on a Cosmopolitan in a hip pub, you may not be able to avoid the stares of a truck driver.

In a move that is sure to raise eyebrows, the state excise department has come up with a proposal where restaurants, pubs and bars in the state holding an FL-III licence (required to sell alcohol) can sell country liquor.

The bizarre bid is yet another attempt to boost the state's revenue.

Though the proposal mentions that country liquor can only be sold and not served at these pubs and bars, government officials fear that the norm will be violated.    

According to the source in the excise department, they have been given an annual target of Rs 6,000 crore. "To meet the target set by the state government, the department is seeking various options to boost sale of country liquor and Indian Made Foreign Liquor (IMFL), which are most popular among tipplers in the state," said the official.

The excise revenue in the state has been steadily increasing from Rs 825 crore in the year 1993-1994 to Rs 3930 crore in the year 2007-2008. In the year 2007-08, revenue incurred from country liquor duty was Rs 1,192 crore, and IMFL was Rs 1,636, according to figures available with the state excise department. In the year 2009-10, the revenue earned was approximately Rs 4,000 crore.

An official from the state government said, "A proposal has been made after the department was given a target of 6,000 crore to earn for the financial year 2010-2011. Providing IMFL at country liquor permit room and providing country liquor at a restaurant or a pub is one of the recent proposals that has been made, which will help the state to increase the revenue. But, we are yet to pass the proposal."

However, the state has its reservations. "Even if the proposal is given a nod, it will not be compulsory to serve country liquor in bars and vice versa. But what we fear is a misuse of stock. There are possibilities that outlets that serve IMFL may start serving country liquor too, though it is not permitted," said the official.  

The excise department has yet another motive behind this proposal - to boost the sale of country liquor which has seen a 30 per cent dip in consumption over the last few years.

According to the excise department official, the department has not issued any new licence for starting new country liquor bars since 1973. "We have received many requests to start new bars, but did not give it a go ahead. As of now there are only 1,500 licensed bars operational in the state. Now, in order to boost sale of country liquor we are looking at other alternatives," he said.           

However, excise department's initiative has not gone down well with both restaurateurs and country liquor bar owners in the city. Mohan Shetty, owner of MG Country Liquor Bar, Bhayendar, said, "This concept is not feasible for us or permit room owners. We cater to clientele from two very different sections of society and neither will be comfortable in the company of each other. It's not practical."

Narayan Alva, president of Indian Hotel and Restaurant Association (AHAR) has also shot down the proposal calling it weird. "Any middle or upper middle class customer will not step into a bar that is frequented by the labour class. The excise department's aim is to increase revenue, but this idea is a complete flop." 

Owners of fine dine restaurants seem extremely reluctant to serve country liquor at their swank bars. "The government should encourage the lower income groups in search of employment to sell country liquor, rather than give pubs the permit to do so. Selling country liquor will tarnish our image. The excise department needs to rethink its proposal," said Kalim  Sheikh, general manager, Marimva Lounge and Ubuntu, a fine dining restaurant at Andheri.

"We will not get any takers for country liquor even if we stock it. It's hard to say if this proposal will work," added Rajeev Sharma, director, Elbow Room, a lounge at Bandra. 

And what about wine shop owners?  "It is absolutely unmeaningful. Why will a CL consumer buy a bottle of liquor from a restaurant at a higher price? Has the government thought about the blow to the wine shop business once they permit country liquor holders to sell IMFL," asked Freddy N Ginwala, president of Maharashtra Wine Merchant Association (MWMA).

Mumbai's tipplers say that they failed to understand the logic behind the revenue department's proposal. "I will never go to a place where country liquor is sold. Even if it's a take away system, I will prefer going to a place where the customers are decent. The government should think about the consumers and not the revenue," grumbled Raju K Sontakke, a producer from Chembur.

Another tippler from Khar, Manish Rao has a similar opinion. "I can't imagine going to a bar where labourers and working class are found loitering. The joint will be considered shady and will indirectly affect the reputation of patrons," he said.