In a concerted effort to curb drunken driving post-New Year celebrations, the Delhi Police and the Delhi Government’s Excise Department had suggested several measures to restro-bar and pub owners operating in the Capital.
But the implementation of these seems to be a far cry from what was intended since profit seems to matter more than the safety of their patrons.
The large number of drunken driving prosecutions in the Capital on every New Year’s Eve pose the same old questions and remind that enforcement needs to be backed by more out-of-the-box thinking. The suggestions this time, included coaxing Delhiites towards ‘responsible drinking’ instead of scaring them with harsh penalties.
The two agencies had, in separate ways, suggested measures such as offering discounts to groups of customers with non-drinking members volunteering to drive their intoxicated friends home, arranging cab facilities for drunk customers as a matter of procedure and dissuading customers from drinking heavily.
However, those running these places say these suggestions are in direct contradiction with the basic principle of business — profit. The Hindu spoke to several pubs in different parts of the city and the answers were consistent.
Some were unabashed enough to say that their primary concern was to host as many customers as possible, even if it compromised safety and they were simply keeping up with what has been the trend. Discounts were in place on drinks so that more alcohol could be consumed instead of less.
“This is the time of the year when we have the highest footfall and naturally this translates into higher profits, good business. It is somewhat unreasonable to expect that we could discourage even a single customer or take a cut on our profits,” said the representative of a bar in New Delhi.
Others said the task of identifying who is drinking and who isn’t, or whether one claimed to be a non-drinker for availing discount was a tedious thing to do on an evening when their joints are chock-a-block. Some cited prior bookings to rule out any changes in the pricing policy.
The most practical suggestions, most of them agreed, were arranging cab facilities.
