The legal drinking age in India and the laws which regulate the sale and consumption of alcohol vary significantly from state to state. Here’s look at minimum drinking age in major cities in India.
Delhi's deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia on March 22 announced lowering of legal age to drink liquor in the national capital to 21 from 25.
Not only is 25 the legal age of drinking alcohol in Maharashtra, but one also needs to have a permit to consume liquor. You need to be at least 25 years old to consume liquor (strong beer, whiskey, vodka, rum and any other liquors with higher levels of alcohol). But you can drink mild beer (alcohol percentage of up to 5 percent), after turning 21 without the permit.
The Kerala government raised the legal drinking age from 21 to 23 years in December, 2017.
The minimum age of consumption of alcohol in Uttar Pradesh is 21 years.
The legal age for drinking in Bengaluru is 18 or 21, depending on which excise department official you ask. The Karanataka Excise Department, 1967, stipulate that drinking age is 21. However, the Karnataka Excise Act, 1965, states 18 as the minimum age to purchase alcohol.
Meanwhile, states such as Bihar, Gujarat, Manipur, Nagaland, Lakshadweep prohibit the consumption of alcohol.