14 June 2019 05:15 pm
The countrywide sale of liquor and all alcoholic beverages will be banned on Poson Poya Day, which falls on Sunday, June 15 and 16, by order of Excise Commissioner General, the department announced.
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 the 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 lawbreakers. (Kurulu Koojana Kariyakarawana)