Guwahati: The Delhi Government has decreased the number of dry days in the national capital to three from 21 last year under its new excise policy, according to an official order released on Monday (January 24).
According to the new excise policy, liquor stores and opium vending machines in Delhi will henceforth be closed only on three national holidays: Republic Day, Independence Day, and Gandhi Jayanti.
The order issued by Deputy Commissioner (Excise) Anand Kumar Tiwari stated, “In pursuance of the provisions of Rule 52 of Delhi Excise Rules, 2010, it is hereby ordered that the following dates shall be observed as “Dry Day” in the National Capital Territory of Delhi by all the licensees of the Excise department and opium vends located in Delhi for the year 2022. Republic Day, Independence Day and Gandhi Jayanti. Apart from the above three dry days, the Government may declare any other day in the year as Dry Day from time to time.”
The excise department further stated that the prohibition on the sale of liquor on dry days does not apply to the service of alcohol to hotel guests with L-15 permits. Hotels with an L-15 licence can serve alcohol to its customers in their rooms.
It may be noted that the national capital observed 21 ‘dry days’ per year which included birth anniversaries of notable leaders and religious holidays.
However, the 21 dry days was one of the highest compared to other states and UTs in the country.