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A customer carries alcohol after purchasing from a wine shop during the ongoing COVID-19 nationwide lockdown at Chander Nagar in East Delhi. (Photo | PTI)

Confusion prevails over online sale of liquor

No online service providing agency will be entrusted with liquor trade. Liquor shop owners will take orders from 7 am to 1 pm and deliver the product home within 7 pm. 

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BHUBANESWAR/CUTTACK: Confusion prevailed over the online sale of alcohol in Bhubaneswar and Cuttack after the State Government gave a nod for home delivery of liquor through retailers and food aggregators - Zomato and Swiggy from Sunday. However, consumers could neither order alcohol online through retailers or designated food aggregators on the day. 

Cuttack Foreign Liquor Owners’ Association welcomed online sale of liquor but at the same time insisted on over the counter sale. “After a meeting with the Association on Sunday night, it has been decided that the liquor shops in the district will start taking online orders and making home-delivery of liquor from Monday,” said Cuttack Collector Bhabani Shankar Chayani. No online service providing agency will be entrusted with liquor trade. Liquor shop owners will take orders from 7 am to 1 pm and deliver the product home within 7 pm. 

“The administration has assured all types of protection following which liquor traders’ body which was at first opposing the online trade later agreed to take it up from Monday,” Chayani added.  Excise department officials said discussions were held with Cuttack and Khurda associations on Sunday and asserted that online sale of liquor will commence in the Twin City from Monday.

“The online sale of liquor commenced at various places in Odisha on Sunday. The issues of Cuttack and Bhubaneswar associations have been resolved and online sale will commence in the two cities from Monday,” said Excise Commissioner Anjan Kumar Manik. The consumers can find retailers of their respective districts and areas along with their phone numbers on Odisha State Beverages Corporation Limited website. “They can book alcohol by either making a phone call to the retailers, by sending a WhatsApp message or a SMS on their mobile phones,” said Manik. The consumers can also order alcohol through Zomato.