Hyderabad pub serves 45 ml alcohol but charges customers for 60 ml, booked

A case was registered against the Dirty Martini Resto Cafe Bar in Hyderabad after Telangana's Legal Metrology Department found that the outlet was illegally collecting service charges of 10 per cent and was also indulging in short serving.

Officials who visited the outlet on Road No 36 in Jubilee Hills as part of a surprise check found that customers who had ordered for 60 ml of a drink were allegedly being served only 45 ml, despite being billed for 60 ml.

"Colection of service charges is illegal. The bar management collected 10% of bill amount as service charges. When a peg of 60 ml liquor was ordered, they served 45 ml. This happened with four pegs. For serving 25% less liquor for billed amount of Rs 1,800, the consumer was cheated for Rs 457. The billing system was seized," Assistant Controller R G Bhaskar Reddy was quoted as saying.

A case has now been registered under relevant sections of the Consumer Protection Act.

Pubs and bars in the city are also presently under scrutiny by the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC).

In March, the municipal body sealed three pubs on Road Number 45 of Jubilee Hills in Hyderabad and served notices to several others for various violations. The charges include illegal parking, tax evasion, absence of trade license and fire safety, and operation of pubs in residential areas.

The pubs were raided after the GHMC officials visited the places for property tax collection and noticed that some hotels/pubs were operating without even the mandatory food and trade license. The corporation closed a few famous pubs in the city, including Fat Pigeon, Dock 45 and Fusion 9, and certified them illegal.

Two others, namely Heart Cup Coffee and United Kitchens of India, were served notices for illegal parking spaces while Toll Gate, another restaurant, came under the scanner for not possessing trade and food license. It was also found to have deviated from the layout plan for constructing a wall and encroaching on an adjoining piece of land.