All liquor stores in Bengaluru will remain closed until March 31 following the lockdown announced by the Karnataka government in the wake of the spread of coronavirus. This order was issued on Monday and will come into effect immediately.

In a notification issued on Monday, Bengaluru Urban Deputy Commissioner GN Shivamurthy stated that liquor stores, bars, pubs, and restaurants will remain closed till March 31 irrespective of the license held by them.  

"The decision has been taken in the interest of public health and to ensure that coronavirus does not spread from person to person," read a notice issued by GN Shivamurthy, Deputy Commissioner, Bengaluru Urban.

Retail liquor stores with CL-2 and CL-11(C) licenses were earlier exempted from the shutdown enforced in the city. They have now been directed to close down immediately.   

While the notice states that the order is effective immediately, some liquor stores remained open in Bengaluru on Monday sparking a rush for stocking up alcohol. An official told TNM that the order was "already enforced" and that liquor stores will be directed to shut down on Monday itself. 

The decision to close down liquor comes after a partial lockdown was announced in nine districts of Karnataka including in Bengaluru. The other districts are Bengaluru Rural, Dakshina Kannada, Kodagu, Belagavi, Dharwad, Kalaburagi, Chikkaballapura, and Mysuru. Bars, pubs and other establishments selling alcohol were earlier notified to be shut on March 13. 

The state has reported 27 cases of COVID-19 so far.