Nagpur: Acting tough on reports of frequent brawls at pubs and bars, the Nagpur Commissioner of Police Amitesh Kumar issued a 28-point notification under Section 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) to regulate ‘night life’ till April 30. However, the notification is mostly a reiteration of the rules already in force for pubs and bars, with some new additions, according to a report in local English daily.
The report said that one of the new additions is that pub and bar owners and management are now responsible for ensuring that customers who have consumed liquor on their premises do not drive their vehicles after leaving. They must deploy “special personnel” to ensure compliance, and signage declaring “drunken driving is illegal” must be erected.
Other prohibitions reiterated in the order include no entry of minors in “permit rooms,” no service of hard liquor to anyone under 25 (with those aged between 21-25 allowed to drink wine and beer only), and a ban on dancing in the seating area. All establishments must shut at 1:30 am sharp, with a grace period of 30 minutes allowed for evacuation, and must follow noise pollution rules and court orders, the report said.
Gold Rate
Thursday 13 March 2025
According to the report, the CP has made it mandatory for establishment owners to deploy “bouncers” after character verification, with any bouncers with criminal records in the last 10 years needing clearance from the Zonal DCP. Owners are also required to install CCTVs at all places accessed by customers, regulate parking and traffic flow, and inform police immediately about any ruckus. They may also declare customers “wilfully indulging in unruly behaviour” as “persona non grata,” and the entry of such customers can be banned by the management.
Similar conditions have been laid down for drug abuse, with owners required to display signage and boards banning consumption of narcotics and thoroughly checking to ensure compliance. The Top Cop has also made it mandatory for the management to seek permission for special ticketed events. The applications need to be made at least two weeks prior to the events, and intimation about foreign or professional performers must also be given to the CP office.
The notification mentions only “bars, permit rooms, restaurants, etc,” but the CP clarified that establishments called by other names like pubs, restro lounges, or nightclubs will also have to enforce these rules.
The notification says:
• No food or liquor orders after 1 am
• No music after 1.30 am
• No more than 30 minutes to evacuate after closing time
• No minors where liquor is served
• No liquor for persons under 21 years of age
• No alcohol, except wine and beer, for those aged between 21-25 years
• No dancing in seating areas
• No professional performers, like artists or DJs, without police permission
• No foreign performers without submitting visa, passport, arrival etc details at CP office
• No ticketed events without prior permission
• No violation of noise pollution rules and court orders
• No smoking except in designated areas
• No e-cigarettes
• No CCTVs without minimum two DVRs
• No public space should be out of CCTV coverage
• No appointment of bouncers without character verification or DCP clearance
• No operations without adequate male and female security personnel
• No guests should be allowed to drive after consuming liquor
• No mismanagement of parking or traffic flow outside
• No liquor service to unruly guests, immediate eviction with video recording
• No entry to unruly customers declared ‘persona non grata’
• No operations without display of entry rules, seating capacity at entrance
• No laxity in reporting to police any untoward incidents
