AP Govt Reduces Liquor Shops By A Further 13 Percent

VIJAYAWADA: Owing to prohibition of Alcohol in a phased manner, the YSRCP government on Saturday cut down the number of shops by another 13 percent in Andhra Pradesh. The liquor shops in the state are operated by the AP State Beverages Corporation Limited.

The state government issued an order to this effect on Saturday. With this, the number of shops in the state will come down from the existing 3500 to 2,934. Earlier, the government had reduced the number of shops by 20 percent thus minimizing it from 4,380 to 3,500. The latest reduction effectively brings the overall reduction of shops in the state to 33 percent. The shops have been ordered to shut their business by the end of this month.

The Andhra Pradesh government led by YS Jagan Mohan Reddy hiked the prices of liquor on Tuesday after all the liquor shops were allowed to reopen in the state following the Centre’s relaxations in some sectors from the ongoing lockdown.

The state government defended its decision to hike the liquor prices and reduce the number of shops, asserting that this would discourage and dissuade people from alcohol consumption and thus safeguard their health.

In fact, Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy had in the election manifesto of YSRCP promised to prohibit liquor in a phased manner keeping in view its ill-effects on the welfare of families across the state.

Also Read:AP Govt Effects Another 50% Hike In Liquor Prices; Reduces Business Hours