State governments across India rushed to restore order after violence and chaos broke out when the country started relaxing it stringent virus lockdown, with migrant workers clashing with police in western part of the country and brawls erupting outside liquor shops in the national capital.
In Mumbai, local police said on Twitter that from Tuesday standalone shops would issue tokens to customers to avoid crowding around storefronts. It used the hashtag #MaintainSoberDistance. In Delhi the state government has imposed a 70% “corona fee” tax on the sale of all alcohol. It’s unclear so far whether the upheaval will continue or whether state governments will step in to enforce more curbs.
The country on Monday partially eased movement curbs across all but the worst infection-hit areas in an attempt to restart its stalled economy. Liquor shops, closed for 40 days under the strict stay-at-home orders, also reopened allowing state governments to earn some much-needed tax revenue.
Stocks of most liquor companies and breweries gained on the bourses, led by a 7.5% advance in GM Breweries Ltd., 6.6% rise in Associated Alcohols & Breweries Ltd., 5% in Globus Spirits Ltd. And 2.7% in Radico Khaitan Ltd.
“You can’t suddenly shut down a country of a billion-plus people without causing large-scale social and economic disruption, and you can’t expect the process of gradually opening it up again to be a seamless transition,” said Michael Kugelman, deputy director and senior associate for South Asia at the Washington-based Wilson Center. “New Delhi will inevitably confront new obstacles as it eases the lockdown.”
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