INTRODUCTION
With more than half of all alcohol drinkers in India falling into the criteria for hazardous drinking, alcohol abuse is emerging as a major public-health problem in the country. The need for restricting the consumption of alcohol arises due to the adverse consequences of alcohol consumption ; ranging from accidents and abuse to liver failure.
According to Global Status report on alcohol and health, 2018 of the World Health Organization (WHO), alcohol consumption contributes to 3.3 million deaths each year globally and also to the disabilities and poor health of millions of people. Article 47 of the Indian Constitution endeavors to bring about the prohibition of the consumption of intoxicating drinks and of drugs that are injurious to health except for medicinal purposes. Thus, Alcohol can only be sold, when a person has a license to do so. Even if a person wants to give away alcohol for free, he has to have a license to do so.
WHAT IS LIQOUR LICENSING?
The Licensing Act, 2003 states that one needs a permit to sell alcohol and related beverages in India. This permit not only restricts the sellers but also regulates the consumer. Alcohol is a subject in the State list under Schedule VII of the Indian Constitution and hence a license is granted by the State Excise Department to those who want to sell and distribute alcoholic beverages or drinks at a particular place. Any person who wants to sell beverages in hotels, motels, restaurants, pubs, or bars should have a license and follow the rules given by State. It is mandatory to have a license, even for online sale of liquor.
Growth in the consumption of alcohol can create unprecedented havoc in the youth of the country which is a serious concern and hence arises a need for a legal drinking age. Legal Drinking Age is the minimum age at which a person can legally consume alcoholic beverages. About 64 percent of the world’s nations have a legal drinking age of 18. In, India, each State has set its own Legal Drinking Age via State Regulations, some of which are mentioned below-
States / Union Territories | Legal Drinking Age | Statutes/ Acts /Legislations |
Andaman and Nicobar Islands | 18 | Section 24 of Andaman and Nicobar Islands Excise Regulation, 2012 |
Dadra and Nagar Haveli | 21 | Section 24 of the Dadra and Nagar Haveli Excise Regulation, 2012 |
Delhi | 21 (earlier 25, now reduced to 21) | Section 23 of Delhi Excise Act, 2010 Delhi Liquor License Rules, 1976 |
Goa | 18 | Section 19 of the Goa Excise Duty Act and Rules, 1964 |
Maharashtra | 21 (Beer and Wine) 25 (Hard Liquor) | Section 18 and Rule 70D of the Bombay Prohibition Act, 1949 |
Rajasthan | 18 | Section 22 of the Rajasthan Excise Act, 1950 |
West Bengal | 21 | Section 51 of the Bengal Excise Act, 1909 |
Jammu and Kashmir | 21 | Section 50 B of Jammu and Kashmir Excise Act, 1958 Rule XI of Jammu and Kashmir Liquor License and Sales Rules, 1984 |
Madhya Pradesh | 21 | Section 23 of the Madhya Pradesh Excise Act, 1915 |
Daman and Diu | 21 | Section 19 of the Goa, Daman and Diu Excise Duty Act & Rules 1964 |
Gujarat, Bihar, Mizoram, and Nagaland are some states in which Alcohol Prohibition is in effect.
Liquor licenses can majorly be either for Consumption or for Sale of liquor on premises. These are the general types of licenses for which an individual or a company can apply for, as per their need (as per Maharashtra State Excise)-
LICENSE NAME
PURPOSE
LICENSE NAME | PURPOSE |
Form F.L. I | Wholesale supply of Indian liquor to other license holders |
Form F.L.III | Hotels that permit the serving of foreign liquors to residents staying in hotel rooms |
Form F.L.VI | Retail vendors of Beers and Indian Liquors. |
Form F.L.IV | Permitted to a club registered to serve foreign liquor. |
Form F.L.IV.A | Granted to any person for serving liquor Temporarily One Day Function license. |
There are other licenses like Form CL-C, Form FL-F, Form-K, Form F.L.W.I and other licenses, which the State Excise department grants for various other reasons. The period of validity of the license should be checked and renewed accordingly.
As stated above, since liquor laws vary from state to state, the cost of a liquor license also varies from state to state. Depending upon the type of Liquor License granted and the event for which it is granted, the following are the average costs that are incurred in obtaining a Liquor License:
A Temporary Liquor License costs somewhere around Rs.10,000 for more than 100 members and Rs. 7,000 for less than 100 members , in a small town ,generally.
Liquor License cost for a Party in a Private Resort or Flat is nearly about Rs.13,000.
Serving Liquor License in Permit Rooms costs about Rs. 5,44,000 and that for a restaurant or beer shop is Rs. 1,50,000.
For obtaining a Liquor License in a particular state, the applicant is required to submit an application fee along with the relevant application form. The license fee attached ranges from Rs. 5000 to Rs. 15000 or more depending upon the prevailing state laws and regulations.
A Division Bench of the Kerala High Court in the case of Alex V Chacko delivered an order that held that no special license under the provisions of the Foreign Liquor Rules was required for serving liquor at a function being held on the premise of an individual’s house. The Bench, however, said the rules regarding permitted quantity and other restrictions should be followed while serving liquor in one’s own household.
The subject of Liquor is governed by a plethora of laws in this country and another such law is regarding the Amount of Alcohol that an individual can keep at home without a permit , which again varies from state to state. For instance, in Delhi the law states that no ‘individual’ can stock more than 18 litres of wine, beer, cider and alcopop and 9 litres of Indian and foreign liquor (whiskey, rum, gin, vodka) at home or for parties. An inter state traveller can carry only one litre of alcohol in the capital while people coming from abroad can bring two litres of liquor with them, into the capital. A L-49 license can be availed from the excise department at the cost of Rs. 2000 to stock more than the prescribed amounts. Whereas, in Goa, a maximum of 12 bottles of Indian Manufactured Foreign Liquor, 24 bottles of beer, 18 bottles of country liquor and 6 bottles of denatured spirit and rectified spirit can be kept in the house.
It is a well-known fact that a number of road accidents which occur everywhere due to reasons like drunkenness, driver’s fault, rash, negligent driving, are mainly drink and drive cases. In the case of The State of Tamil Nadu v K. Balu and Anr, the judgment highlighted the number of road accidents due to the influence of alcohol and drugs was 16,298 for the year 2015, which recorded for 3.3 percent of the total number of road accidents in that year. Thus , it is important to know what amounts to drunken driving and what is the permissible limit. The Blood Alcohol Level (BAC) permissible in India is 0.03%, that is, 30 mg per100 ml of blood. If BAC is under this limit then , it does not amount to any offence. The Police officer can check these limits via ‘Breath Analyzer Test’ or by breath and blood tests.
The World Health Organisation is currently developing an action plan (2022-2030) to effectively implement the Global strategy to reduce the harmful use of alcohol as a public health priority. It will develop a technical report on the harmful use of alcohol related to cross-border alcohol marketing , advertising and promotional activities, including targeting youth and adolescents, as well as to adequately resource the work on the harmful use of alcohol, as per an official statement.
CONCLUSION
It is clear to all that in India, like any other law, liquor law has also been taken for granted. Any law regarding liquor which is meant to get alcohol consumption in control gets avoided instantly in India and people always find a way to break to law ,like in the Dry States where liquor is prohibited, there are sellers available in states who sell liquor illegally and people buy it illegally. There are even more unlicensed sellers of liquor than licensed ones. It shows that the condition of liquor laws implementation in India is absolutely poor. It is very essential for the nation to ensure that the legal drinking age should be strictly followed and there should be diligent participation of the law enforcement agencies towards this. A zero-tolerance policy must be devised and enforced especially in the cases of drink and drive. Identifying vulnerable areas and setting up of proper checkpoints will help to reduce number of accidents. There is a need for laws with strict punishments to make sure the implementation of those laws as well.
Written By,
Nidhi Bhandari,
Intern, Chanchlani Law World
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