Delhi cracks down on underage drinking, mandates physical ID checks

New Delhi: The Delhi government has tightened regulations for serving alcohol in the city, directing hotels, clubs, and restaurants to verify the age of their customers through physical government-issued identity proofs. This decision follows the detection of multiple violations of the legal drinking age norm during recent inspections by the excise department. Delhi mandates a minimum drinking age of 25 years. However, inspections revealed instances of underage individuals consuming alcohol, with some pretending to meet the age requirement. Complaints were also lodged against certain establishments for serving liquor to underage patrons, officials stated.

Under the Delhi Excise Act, 2009, serving alcohol to individuals below 25 years is prohibited. Violators, including license holders and their employees, face legal action. To prevent further breaches, the excise department issued a circular mandating age verification using physical ID proofs, excluding digital IDs stored on mobile devices unless accessed via the Digilocker portal.

The legal drinking age in Delhi has long been a contentious issue, especially since neighbouring NCR cities like Noida and Gurugram have a lower drinking age. A proposal to reduce Delhi’s drinking age to 21 under the scrapped 2021-22 excise policy failed amid allegations of corruption.

As part of Delhi’s ongoing drug-free campaign, the excise department has also instructed licensees to take an e-pledge against drug abuse, prominently display certificates, and educate staff and customers about the importance of staying away from drugs.