Liquor on highways: SC notice to Centre, states, UTs

The Supreme Court on Wednesday sought responses from the Centre, states and Union Territories on a plea seeking a direction to amend excise laws to ensure that no liquor is sold alongside state and national highways due to rising fatalities in road mishaps across the nation. A bench of Chief Justice T S Thakur and Justice A M Khanwilkar issued notice on a PIL which alleged that states and UTs were not acting despite comprehensive recommendations of a panel headed by Justice K S Radhakrishnan, former apex court judge, that there should be “ban on sale of alcohol on state and national highways”. The PIL filed by E V Balakrishnan, through lawyer M Rambabu, has referred to the 2015 report of the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways and said that almost five lakh accidents occurred last year in India, killing 1,46,000 people and leaving thrice the number injured.