Visakhapatnam: Tipplers in Andhra Pradesh guzzled up Rs 147 crore worth of liquor on New Year's Eve, a marginal increase from last year’s sales on this day.
There were long queues in front of liquor shops in both rural areas and cities right from the time the shops opened and the brisk sales continued till late in the night.
“The sale on Sunday showed an increase by Rs 5 crore compared to the previous New Year's Eve,’’ said the managing director of AP Breweries Corporation, Vasudev Reddy.
Sources said Visakhapatnam, Vijayawada, Guntur, Rajamahendravaram, and Tirupati topped the list of highest sales on Sunday.
Many shops opened their backdoors throughout the night and continued the sales after the deadline.
Several shops and bars offered free snacks and pickles to attract customers. The checkpoints set up by the police to monitor drunken driving cases did not deter the people. More than 3,000 cases of drunken driving were registered all over the state by Sunday evening.
The state has 840 licensed bars and restaurants, 3,500 government shops, 1,468 pubs, and 38 bars attached to star hotels. All these outlets did good business for the entire day.
More people would have consumed liquor had the shops sold popular brands. Taking advantage of the demand, most shops sold unknown brands said a salesperson in Vizianagaram.
In Visakhapatnam, the shops sold liquor worth Rs 10.6 crore during the day. The city has 71 government-run shops and around 120 bars and restaurants including star hotels.
On average, the shops and bars sell around Rs 5 crore worth of liquor, but on New Year's Eve, the sales doubled. Anakapalli district sold Rs 6.5 crore worth of liquor.
“There was no significant increase in the sales compared to the previous years,’’ said district excise superintendent, Sudheer.
