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No water, no beer: Brewers in a bind
Highlights
Beer may prove elusive for guzzlers in the upcoming summer if the major breweries in Telangana State carry out their threat to stop production from Sankratnthi festival. Sankaranthi falls on January 14 next year.
Beer may prove elusive for guzzlers in the upcoming summer if the major breweries in Telangana State carry out their threat to stop production from Sankratnthi festival. Sankaranthi falls on January 14 next year. The decision by major breweries surrounding Hyderabad is a sequel to Hyderabad Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage Board’s (HMWSSB) proposal to cut water supply to them. The HMWSSB has thrown up its hands in the backdrop of increased demand for drinking water in the city and depletion of water bodies.
Crown, SAB miller, United Breweries and Carlesberg are the main breweries located near Sangareddy, 50 km away from State capital. They are manufacturing beer and supply to Telangana State Beverages Corporation, the official liquor distribution agency to the licensed liquor outlets and bars in the State. The managements of the breweries are said to have told the Excise Department that they cannot continue production of beer if the water supplies to the units
was cut. This is not the first time that the beer manufacturers are facing the water scarcity. In the last two months, the managements of these companies have brought to the notice of the government about the problems following cutting down of water supply to them and the difficulty in producing beer. With the intervention Minister for Excise and Prohibition T Padma Rao, a solution has been found to ensure supply of water till
January-end.
The officials of the breweries told The Hans India that these companies require 40 lakh litres of water to turn out 30 lakh cases of beer every month. At present, water board is supplying only 60 per cent of total requirement of water forcing the companies to cut down production targets. The Breweries Association Secretary A Kameshwara Rao said the Water Board’s decision to stop water supply in the summer would lead to the production of beer to a grinding halt as there is no alternative. The government’s suggestion to draw water from Singoor reservoir with the help of tankers is ruled out because water levels in the reservoir has depleted all time low due to poor inflows.
In a bid to address the problem, Industries Department informed the managements that the companies would be allowed to dig borewells by relaxing the rules.
But digging bore wells is not feasible as ground water levels are already dipped, the Association leader said.
The only option is to import beer from neighbouring states but government has imposed Rs 40 tax on each case (containing 12 bottles) to meet the demand in the summer. The government will lose nearly Rs 1,000 crore revenue if beer is not available during summer.
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