HYDERABAD: Two hoots to Covid-19 and its highly transmissible variant Omicron! The devotees of Bacchus in Hyderabad and rest of Telangana are getting ready to get sloshed to welcome the New Year with the State government issuing a memo on Tuesday allowing pubs and bars to operate till 1 am and liquor shops till 12 midnight on December 31.
At a time when the rest of India is shutting down on the last day of this year to arrest the spread of Omicron bogey by imposing night curfews, Hyderabad and other towns are opening up for the tipplers.
Hyderabad holds out a great fascination for those in other States too, who make quick trips to make most of the time as the city dishes out very interesting and varied fare at the umpteen farmhouses that dot its outskirts.
But this time around, there would be no events as such at resorts and pubs but they would be open to welcome the tipplers with wide open arms and let them sing and dance all through the night.
Liquor is expected to flood the streets as the memo issued by the Excise Department said that 2B (Bars), CI licensees (in-house), EP1 licensees (event permit) and TD1 (in-house) licensees of Tourism Development Corporation could serve liquor up to 1 am and that those with A4 licenses (retail shops) could remain open up to midnight, subject to adherence to Covid-19 SOPs but it is anybody’s guess as to what extent this instruction would be complied with.
Decision on liquor shops draws flak
Interestingly, the State government recently issued a GO banning rallies and public meetings, which implied that the order was meant for political parties.
Since there was no mention of gatherings as such, even on Christmas Day there were no restrictions in celebration of the festival in Churches. The same is likely to apply on December 31 as the parties and celebrations at pubs and bars are not considered public meetings.
The Excise Department’s memo was issued a day ahead of the PIL coming up for hearing in the High Court which last Thursday asked the State to ensure prevention of public gatherings during Christmas, New Year and Sankranti in the wake of Omicron threat.
The government has drawn flak from several quarters as the order reeked of its intention to augment its revenue through the sale of liquor, though the lives of the people are on the line in the wake of an increasing number of Omicron cases.
TPCC chief A Revanth Reddy tweeted: “Other states are imposing night curfews to control Covid but Telangana CMO permits bars to serve liquor till 1 am and wine shops till 12 midnight. Revenue is priority over lives?” Activist Vijay Gopal tweeted: “We will regret soon.”