Lockdown has not hit demand for liquor: Pinarayi Vijayan

Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Monday said the lockdown had not doused the demand or appetite for liquor.

The State was concerned that bootleggers had stepped into the void caused by the closure of bars and liquor shops.

Bootleggers operated well beyond the pale of the police and the Excise Department. The State had upped its vigilance.

He said the State would provide food and accommodation to Lakshadweep islanders stranded on the mainland due to the cancellation of ships.

For betel farmers

The government would give betel farmers a day’s exemption to tend to their crops.

Mr. Vijayan said community kitchen and voluntary services were not venues for political competition or one-upmanship. The State had to stand as one in the time of the national adversity.

Law enforcers booked 96 traders for short-selling provisions and overcharging buyers.