HYDERABAD: Be it to get hold of some after-party alcohol, an early morning peg, or some beer or whisky after a long day, tipplers always know the list of ‘belt shops’ in their locality that sell booze beyond their designated hours. However, these ‘belt shops’ — most of which are operated out of houses or small commercial establishments — are being clamped down across the State.
Officials from the Telangana Prohibition and Excise Department said that law enforcement measures are limited not only to belt shops but any unauthorised sale of liquor in general. This has increased in view of the implementation of Model Code of Conduct.
Apart from belt shops that sell Indian Made Foreign Liquor (IMFL) and beer, around 370 teams from the excise department have seized the same —along with Illegally Distilled (ID) liquor and toddy — from wine shops.