During the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, Maharashtra continues to remain the worst-hit state in the nation. Despite the state nearing the 4 lakh mark in COVID-19 cases, a few lockdown rules have been relaxed over the past two months. Since May 15, the state government lifted its temporary ban on liquor sale.
Alcohol is now being sold online in 33 districts across Maharashtra. With the provision of door-to-door liquor, the state treasury has been benefitting. As many as 40,18,071 consumers have purchased alcohol online in the state. After conditional approval for the sale of liquor, out of total 11,026 retail liquor licenses in the state, 6621 are in operation so far.
However, since the government eased the lockdown rules, some illegal activities and malpractices have also taken place in the state. On Sunday, 53,845 customers were served home-made liquor. Following this, the State Excise Department has registered cases against 12,788 illegal alcohol smugglers. Alcohol is also reportedly being smuggled from the neighbouring states into Maharashtra. In order to prevent this, the concerned Divisional Deputy Commissioners and Superintendents have added roadblocks and checkpoints at various entry points of the state. The officers and staff of the department are deployed at 12 border check posts.
On July 25 alone, 74 illegal alcohol sale-related cases were registered in the state and 41 accused have been arrested. Along with that, a total of ₹12 lakh worth of alcohol has been seized. During the lockdown period from March 24 to May 25, a total of 12,788 crimes were registered in the state and 6,300 accused have been arrested. So far, 1,271 vehicles have been seized and a total of ₹32.50 crores has been confiscated.
Although liquor permits are available on the State Excise website, it has been pointed out that there are some glitches with the iOS system on the website. As long as these issues in the system are being rectified, people who wish to obtain a liquor permit are directed to make arrangements for the issuance of liquor licenses offline at the Deputy Inspector of State Excise and Superintendent's Offices. The liquor permit is available at a fee of ₹100 for one year or ₹1,000 for a lifetime license.