Owners of pubs in Hyderabad want the nights to be younger. They are seeking government orders to entertain customers for longer. Some of them have requested Telangana Prohibition and Excise officials to extend closing time of the establishments at least by an hour.
Currently, pubs and bars have to down shutters by 12 midnight on weekdays, and by 1 a.m. on weekends (Friday and Saturday).
Business hours
At a recent meeting between pub owners and Excise officials, the former said the business boom hours are from evenings to nights of Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. On other days, they try to draw people in with offers such as happy hours.
“A few of them have requested that the closing hour be extended,” a senior official from the Excise department said.
The request had been put forth before drugs were allegedly seized at a pub in Banjara Hills by Hyderabad police Task Force a little over three weeks ago.
That incident has brought about a sharp change in the situation.
Excise officials and their teams were asked to cross-check if all the rules laid down by the government are followed by pubs and bars. Sources said pubs have been recording a drop in footfall since the drug bust.
A source in the department said though pub managements have been requesting extension of timings for long, chances of that happening are slim in view of the prevailing situation. They said the timings had already been extended by an hour for weekends. The music has to stop, and parties have to end by specified timings.
