Nod for wine shops 100 metres away from places of worship, schools

Hyderabad: A distance of a mere 100 metres from places of worship and educational institutions is enough to set up liquor shops. This rule will pertain only to places of worship notified by the endowment department.

Days after new liquor shops were selected by lottery, officials from the excise department are now busy giving permission to license holders to start regular sales from December 1.

Stating that many license holders are facing difficulty in getting proper locations for their outlets in the city limits and district headquarters following huge rentals, senior excise officials have made it categorically clear that 100 metres distance from any place of worship and educational institutions and hospitals was enough to open liquor shops. Meanwhile, officials have stalled the process of some license holders as the premises they have opted for are very close to places of worship.

"Of the 2,500 new licensed holders, approximately 950 have readied their premises. In Hyderabad, Ranga Reddy and Rachakonda limits, license holders are facing a tough time in getting premises in view of heavy rentals and huge deposits as advance amount," officials said.

A similar situation prevails in district headquarters.

In rural areas, license holders have submitted  details of their location to excise officials and placed indents for taking off on December 1.

To cite an instance, the excise department allocated one liquor shop for four wards based on its population and projected sales.

"We obtained Nizampet, KPHB and Balanagar. We have completed all formalities like paying fees and placing indents. But, we had a tough time getting cheaper premises. We have paid huge advance to landlords in Nizampet and KPHB while qw still struggle for a suitable place in Balanagar," said Jaganath M, whose family got licenses recently.