18 hours Ago By Priya Kothari
PUNE : Following a liquor ban imposed ahead of polling day and an impending partial ban on Saturday, liquor shops have been seeing a rush of buyers. Sameer Pathak, a resident of Aundh, said that he went to buy liquor on Wednesday night and had to wait in a queue. “We planned a house party on Friday night, and I want to ensure that I am well stocked up before the stocks run out at stores,” he said.
Liquor owners were allowed to open their shops only after the election procedure was complete post 8 pm on Wednesday. A liquor shop owner at Pashan said, “We saw quite a bit of rush on Wednesday because the preceding two days were dry days. We are expecting a rush on Friday too.
” Typically, before a dry day, liquor stores see a 20-25% rise in sales. Rajit Pardeshi, who runs Pardeshi Wines at Karve Road, said that there was a rush after the store opened on Wednesday night. “A lot of brands were sold out because of the demand.
We may stock up additionally as it’s a partial dry day on Saturday, season time, and also the weekend,” he said. Store owners said that the imposition of a partial ban, which allows liquor stores to operate only for 2-3 hours, is causing a lot of overcrowding at stores in a short operating window. “It is extremely stressful and becomes very difficult for us to manage the crowd.
There is a parking issue, and sometimes it even results in customer fights,” said a liquor store owner in Mandai. Akash Khanna, a resident of Kondhwa, said he had to turn back because of the rush outside the liquor store in his area on Wednesday. “It was impossible to park anywhere near the store, and the brand that I wanted was sold out.
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