Video surveillance at Bevco outlets

Thiruvananthapuram: Surveillance cameras will be installed at the 338 outlets of the Kerala State Beverages Corporation (KSBC, also known as Bevco) to check malpractices and unlawful activities.

The outlets will also be spruced up in a phased manner once they  are moved to new premises. But drinkers will have to pay more for getting liquor from Bevco outlets  as the prices have been  made in multiples of ten from this month.

A couple of cameras will be installed at each outlet so that  the activities  at the counter and even in front of it could be captured. A control room will be set up at KSBC headquarters from where the video footage  could be monitored round-the-clock. The footages  will have back-up for 15 days so that they could be used in case of any complaints.

“The corporation board has already cleared the project and it is pending government sanction,” said KSBC managing director N. Prasanth.

At present, most of the Bevco outlets are functioning in rented buildings and hence it was difficult to spruce up the premises. “We are now looking for own buildings or buildings of PSUs all over the state to shift the outlets. While shifting to new premises, the ambiance would be also improved,” he said. Steps to set up a new self-service counter in Kochi were also progressing as the one opened at Ulloor here was found to be a big success, he said.

MARGINAL HIKE IN PRICE

A marginal hike was made in the prices of all liquor products at Bevco outlets from this month as the prices have been  made in multiples of ten. This would bring an additional annual revenue of '40 crore to the KSBC.

The prices of all products  that were earlier in multiples of five have been rounded  to multiples of ten. This was made mainly considering the difficulties in giving balance to customers due to the shortage of five-rupee coins.