Kerala Tourism Minister to review the closure of liquor bars at tourist hotspots

Thiruvananthapuram:  Kerala Tourism Minister AC Moideen on Thursday sought a “relook” on closure of liquor bars in tourist hotspots in the state which has seen a fall in arrivals causing a loss to the tourism industry. The previous UDF government had decided to close down 700-odd liquor bars attached to hotels below five star categories in 2014. [caption id=“attachment_2715462” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Representational image. AFP[/caption] Kerala has seen a severe dip in tourist arrivals and fall in revenues following the closure of bars. “The present excise policy has dealt a severe blow to the tourism industry in Kerala,” Moideen told reporters here. “There has been a severe fall in the growth of tourist arrivals in the state. With hotels not serving liquor, conferences have come down and the state is losing out,” he said, adding, liquor should be made available in bars in tourist hotspots. Tourism Department’s report has been submitted to Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, he said. In Kerala, while the domestic arrival of tourists touched 124,65,571 in 2015, a growth of 6.59 per cent, figure for foreign tourist arrival was 9,77,479 (5.86 percent growth), he said. In 2014, domestic tourist arrivals stood at 116,95,411 (7.71 percent) against 9,23,366 (7.60 per cent) of international visitors, while in 2013 it was 108,57,811 (7.75 percent) and foreign tourists 8,58,143 (8.12 per cent). During 2014, the state earned Rs 6,398.93 crore in foreign exchange earnings showing a 15 percent increase, while it was Rs 6,949.88 crore last year with a dip of 8.6 percent. The total revenue generated from tourism (direct and indirect) in 2014 was Rs 24,885.44 crore (12.11 percent) while in 2015 it was Rs 26,689.63 crore (7.25 percent).