Although the LDF government’s draft alcohol policy on pubs is silent, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has spoken out on the importance of social life in IT parks in Kerala after dark. He said the government will soon take steps to develop and promote the nightlife infrastructure necessary for IT parks.
“We used to think about it seriously, but couldn’t take the necessary steps because of COVID. Now that we are opening up, we will move on, ”the Chief Minister told the Assembly on Wednesday.
He also said the lack of pubs was seen as a major disadvantage by leading IT companies. The prime minister said, as if to justify pub politics, such demands were dictated by social change. “When large IT companies come to Kerala, their mostly young employees naturally want the facilities they enjoy in other IT hotspots in the country. The lack of such facilities has become a major disadvantage for us, ”he said. The prime minister said the representatives these large companies are sending to assess the facilities in Kerala report that Kerala is far behind in providing recreational opportunities.
The truth is, big companies think recreational opportunities are just as important as air and road connections in one place. When auto giant Nissan planned to open its first global digital hub in Kerala, a nightlife infrastructure around the hub was one of its main requirements.
This is the second time that the Prime Minister has openly expressed the need for a pub culture for IT employees who long for opportunities to relax after long and hard work. On his weekly sponsored TV show Naam Munnottu in November 2019, the Prime Minister revealed that the lack of a pub culture in Kerala is hindering Kerala’s IT growth. Back then, too, he had said that the lack of settlement options in Kerala was preventing IT majors from investing in Kerala.
In the months that followed, however, the CPM had discussed the issue at length and decided to omit any mention of pubs and nightlife in the draft Spirits Directive published on February 25, 2020. There were fears that the UDF would use them as a campaign theme. Nonetheless, sources told Onmanorama that the guideline had not been abandoned for good, but simply allowed to cool down until an opportune moment occurred.
Interestingly, the then excise minister TP Ramakrishnan had said two weeks before the draft directive was published that pubs could be opened after paying a license fee of 50,000 rupees. In short, the LDF government had always kept its pub policy alive. It also helped that the Prime Minister himself looked after the IT portfolio.