KOZHIKODE: The youths here have found a new method to earn a quick buck. They purchase liquor from the Beverages Corporation outlets and sell it to the needy in rural areas at double the price.
The excise department and the police are helpless as they do not have provisions to take action against such retailers. Some persons even sell liquor at peg rates in their houses, but it is difficult to prove the money transaction, excise sources told DC.
Even if a raid is conducted on the house, the retailer would say that he was entertaining his guests and that the department has no business to interrupt.
“A person can stock liquor not exceeding three litres with bill and there is no bar on a group of people consuming liquor in one’s residence,” excise deputy commissioner P.K. Suresh told DC.
The Bevco outlets can only sell a maximum of three litres of Indian Made Foreign Liquor to an individual. However, youths make multiple trips to the outlet and some even buy up to 30 litres a day. The Bevco staff also cannot block anyone from making multiple purchases.
“After the closure of the bars, most of the elite customers source liquor from such gangs as they do not want to stand in the long queues at Bevco outlets. They also do not mind paying a premium for it,” a person involved in the trade told DC.
This business is rampant in areas which do not have Bevco or Supplyco outlets nearby. “For those in Karanthur, the nearest Bevco outlet is at Kottooli, which is about 15 km away. Many do not travel all the distance and stand in queue as they get liquor from such illegal vendors. The liquor quality is also assured,” said Krishna Kumar, a resident of Medical College area.
