CHENNAI: Next time you head for a bar, don’t forget to check the address and availability of liquor. After the Supreme Court order clarified that not just liquor shops, bars too will be prohibited in the 500m radius of highways, several of Chennai’s iconic bars may have a change of address.
Bars close to Anna Salai, ECR, OMR & GST Road may have to temporarily close and shift their address once the enforcement of the SC’s order begins. In most other states, this has already come into effect and led to closure of bars on the highways.
Star hotels that Express contacted are still uncertain about the situation and do not know if the order will exempt them. Particularly within the city, several bars are situated in close proximity to roads such as Anna Salai, Arcot Road, Jawaharlal Nehru Road and GST Road.
Bars attached to hotels in densely populated areas such as T Nagar, Nungambakkam, RA Puram would all have to relocate. Some iconic bars that fall under this category are 10 Downing Street, Plan B, US 101, Leather bar and Dublin.
In order to maintain reasonable distance from the airport, several of city’s star hotels dot the GST road. Now they too will have to find an alternative. Bars in star hotels such as ITC Grand Chola, Hilton, Hablis, Radisson Blu and even the liquor shops and bars within the airport may soon have to relocate.