Asia | Unholy spirit

India’s capital has run out of booze

Acquiring alcohol has again become a hellish ordeal

An Indian man reacts in joy after reaching the front of a long queue to buy liquor at one of the liquor shops which reopened Monday after six weeks lockdown on the outskirts of New Delhi, India, Monday, May 4, 2020. India's six-week coronavirus lockdown, which was supposed to end on Monday, has been extended for another two weeks, with a few relaxations. Locking down the country's 1.3 billion people has slowed down the spread of the virus, but has come at the enormous cost of upending lives and millions of lost jobs. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri)

Sep 22nd 2022|DELHI

Liquor stores in Mumbai take orders from customers on WhatsApp, deliver drinks to the doorstep and accept payment by credit card, mobile transfer and even cash. In booming Gurgaon, just over the state border from Delhi, India’s capital, enormous emporia entice thirsty—and thrifty—tipplers. In Delhi itself, though, potential buyers of booze must visit dank, government-run establishments, often in insalubrious markets, and join jostling, all-male queues for limited stocks of whatever is available that day. It is a hellish ordeal.

This article appeared in the Asia section of the print edition under the headline “Unholy spirit”