Within a drop of 500 meters of highway alcohol

new delhi - In the fight against drink drivers India take draconian measures. Where in the Netherlands only the stations directly drained off the highway, is in India now not a drop of alcohol for sale within 500 meters drive from the main roads.

In India many drivers look out on a glass more or less. Every year, on the Indian roads kill about 60 000. In seventy percent of the cases, alcohol in the game.

The controversial measure will cost thousands of shop owners, hotels and restaurants, a large part of their turnover. The first bars are already closed. A trade organization thinks the industry almost ten billion euros per year will cost.

The worst affected area is Gurgaon, a suburb of metropolitan New Delhi. The area is home to a huge concentration of multinational companies, all in the immediate vicinity of a busy highway. According to the owner of The Beer Cafe in Gurgaon is its turnover since the measure dropped by 99 percent. 'Why should I start my business elsewhere? Perhaps they will soon be banning all beverage sales within a kilometer of the highway, 'bar owner Rahul Singh asks.\n  \n   \n    \n    \n   \n   \n   \n      \n   \n     A bizarre image in the entertainment district in Gurgaon, many restaurants have closed their doors.\n    \n   \n     Photo: AFP

Some entrepreneurs in Gurgaon attempt to circumvent the new law creatively. So want some restaurant owners to move the entrance to the back of their property. In this way, the drive would be more than 500 meters amounts and can open the tap again.