KSTHOA Rejects Support for November 20 Liquor Bandh Amid Tourism Concerns
Abhishek Mukherjee 
Office bearers of the Karnataka State Tourism Hotel Owners Association (KSTHOA) announced that they won't support the liquor bandh called by the Karnataka Wine Merchant Federation on November 20.
Speaking to the media at Kannada Sahitya Bhavan on Sunday, district president Umesh Bali appealed to govt to resolve the problems faced by more than 2,400 tourism hotels in the state, including 72 in Belagavi district. "Over 10,800 licensed liquor store establishments are preparing for a statewide shutdown on Nov 20 in protest against the alleged corruption in the state excise department. The hotels and boarding with CL-7 licences are already facing loss. Amid this crisis, we won't extend support to the liquor bandh," he said.
"There may be corruption in the excise department. It is true that the excise department and police harass the licensees a lot. Govt should warn the officials to avoid this," he said. "The bandh will cause much inconvenience to the tourists in the state. Those who made advance bookings will face difficulties," he said."We met chief minister Siddaramaiah and excise minister RB Timmapur and submitted a memorandum urging them to resolve the problems faced by the KSTHOA. We requested govt to reduce the annual fee and increase the excise profit margin from 10 to 20 percent. As a measure to promote tourism in the state, provision should be made for 24-hour service in tourism hotels. We requested a concession in GST, electricity charges, water bills, and property tax paid by tourism hotels. Govt will declare dry days during religious observances, local festivals, and events. On such days, the harassment by the excise department and police is high, and action should be taken to avoid this," he added.
