Booze ban on Poson Poya day

By Kurulu Koojana Kariyakarawana 
The countrywide sale of liquor and all alcoholic beverages will be banned on Poson Poya Day, which falls on Sunday, June 16, by order of Excise Commissioner General, the department announced yesterday.   
Excise Department Spokesman Deputy Commissioner Kapila Kumarasinghe said the order will prevail on all wine shops, bars, restaurants, taverns and hotels around the country. The order will also include all Sri Lanka Tourist Board approved guest houses, rest houses as well as the hotels that chiefly serve foreign tourists.   
Meanwhile, the sale of liquor in Anuradhapura District will be prohibited for the whole week from June 13 to 19 targeting the main Poson celebrations scheduled to be held in Mihintale.   
The spokesman said that the department had organised special surveillance operations during this period and additional Excise personnel had been deployed to apprehend law breakers.     

The order will also include all Sri Lanka Tourist Board approved guest houses, rest houses as well as the hotels that chiefly serve foreign tourists