No bar licences without Govt's knowledge; Kerala to revise licensing system, says CM

Thiruvananthapuram, Nov 4 (UNI) Kerala Chief Minister V.D. Satheesan on Wednesday asserted that no fresh bar licence would be granted in the state without the knowledge of the government and the Excise Minister, announcing that the existing system empowering excise officials to issue licences independently would be overhauled. Addressing a press conference here, Satheesan said the provision allowing excise officials to grant bar licences without the knowledge of the minister concerned was introduced during the previous LDF government's tenure. Describing it as an improper administrative arrangement, he said the government would correct the system and ensure that such decisions were…