‘This is a progressive step and need of the hour’
Citing the development as a progressive step, the restaurant says that a uniform drinking age across NCR is something they have been waiting for for a very long time. Commenting on the same, restaurateur Rahul Singh, which has outlets across the NCR, says, “It is imperative for the nation’s capital to lower the legal drinking age to international norms. The legal drinking age in the neighboring states of UP (21 years) and Rajasthan (18 years) has made Haryana realize the importance of responsible drinking and reducing illegal consumption. While the Delhi government has already made a provision to reduce the age to 21, a petition in the High Court has stayed it from being notified. Restaurateur Zorawar Kalra says, “It is a nice development and is in line with many parts of the country and the rest of the world. If someone can vote at 18 and marry at 21, then drinking beer should be allowed at 21. This will also prevent illegal consumption by the youth. Uniform drinking age for NCR would prevent people from crossing state borders just to drink alcohol. Sahil Sambhi, who has several restaurants in Gurgaon, says, “This is a very progressive and welcome move by the Haryana administration and makes complete sense. The age criterion for restaurants and bars was a major challenge. It’s the younger crowd that we can target right now, and those are the regular people who go out to party. ,
‘Hopefully the change will be implemented in both Delhi and Gurgaon soon’
Many youths often travel to Noida from Delhi and Gurgaon to drink alcohol, especially on weekends and other occasions. “Whenever it came to celebrating with friends, we would always choose a restaurant or bar in Noida, even if my friends and I were in Delhi and Gurgaon. We are all around 22-24 years old, and yet, if we drank in Delhi or Gurgaon we would have been breaking the law! So, it was better to drive to Noida, but commuting for almost two hours is a big hassle, and as adults, it is very annoying that you have to drive so much to get a beer,” says Sugandha Bhatia, 24 , a HR professional from Gurgaon. Some say that although the announcement (change in the legal drinking age in Delhi and now Haryana) is a positive step, its implementation is awaited. “In Delhi, it was announced a few months back and still nothing has changed on the ground. Let us hope that now that Haryana has announced it, it will not take much time to implement it. If not Delhi, at least we will have the option of going to Gurgaon for a drink,” says Pratibha Mishra, a 21-year-old student from Delhi.
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