Even as the Kerala State Beverages Corporation (Bevco) on Friday informed the Kerala High Court that steps were being initiated to provide more facilities at its liquor outlets, Justice Alexander Thomas expressed displeasure over the government failure to respond to the court suggestion for a commission to look into the facilities available at the outlets.
Meanwhile, on another petition seeking to implement the M. Ramachandran Commission report on the liquor policy, the judge directed the State government to file a statement detailing the steps taken to implement the recommendations. The petition was filed by High Court lawyer Basil Attipetty.
Justice Alexander Thomas wondered why the government was meting out step-motherly treatment to public corporations such as Bevco.
It seemed to have turned a blind eye to improving the facilities for consumers at these outlets. The court orally pointed out that just as the government efforts for metro rail for solving transport woes in Kochi, the government could take a cue from the Delhi government policy and emulate the system of distribution of liquor in New Delhi. (In Delhi, four public corporations are engaged in retail trade of liquor. Private entrepreneurs are also allowed to run retail outlets in Delhi. The Delhi government has also granted licence for retail sale of beer and mixed alcoholic beverages through departmental stores).
The court made the oral observations when a petition by Bevco challenging the decision of the Sasthamcotta panchayat directing it to close down an outlet at Bharanikkavu came up for hearing.
Bevco counsel C.S. Ajith Prakash submitted that the corporation had initiated steps to open more outlets depending on the availability of space. In fact, more than one counter was functioning at all outlets which had high sales turnover. It also proposed to run outlets in supermarkets where people could take bottles of their choice. However, sufficient security personnel needed to be provided at these counters. He also submitted that the corporation was running as many as 338 outlets, of which, 331 were functioning from rented buildings. As part of the corporation’s initiative to improve facilities, it would construct shelters over its counters .
Last time, when the petition came up for hearing, the court had observed that long queues were seen in front of the outlets, often causing public nuisance.
