Cuttack: The residents of Balu Bazaar and members of the Balu Bazaar Puja Committee here Monday staged a sit-in in front of a proposed liquor outlet, condemning the administrative approval for opening the foreign liquor shop in the locality.
Expressing dismay over the approval by the authorities the protesters asked how a licence was granted to open the liquor outlet in the area, which is close to schools, temples and residential houses.
Balu Bazaar Puja Committee president Suryakanta Sanganeria said, “The Cuttack collector has granted permission to open the liquor outlet in the Balu Bazaar market without taking into consideration the fact that educational institutions are located near the proposed liquor shop.”
When asked Balu Bazaar Puja Committee secretary Rajendra Kumar Samal said, “There are some educational institutions like the Emarti Devi Women’s College, Marwari High School, Marwari Hindi School and Saraswati Sishu Vidya Mandir just 100 metres from the liquor outlet. The Vinod Bihari temple, Gobindajiu temple and many jewellery shops are also in the area.”
Samal said a memorandum had been submitted to the collector and the excise commissioner to cancel the licence of the liquor shop. Meanwhile, the public has threatened to intensify the protest if the licence is not cancelled or the shop is not shifted from the locality.
PNN