A tourist drinking beer at a restaurant in Kovalam in south Kerala on September 9, 2014 (Agence France-Presse photo)

The Kerala High Court will today pronounce its verdict on a clutch of petitions challenging the state government's decision to shut down over 700 bars in the state.Announcing a 10-year plan that would bring prohibition to Kerala, Chief Minister Oommen Chandy said in August that over 700 bars across the state will have to shut down, adding that only five-star hotel would be allowed to keep serving booze and even they will have go dry on Sundays.The bar owners had challenged that order in court, contending that the decision was taken in 'haste' and would be counter-productive as it would lose substantial revenue, besides impacting tourism.Earlier, the Supreme Court, which was also approached by an association of bar owners, had stayed the government's decision till September 30 and said that the exemption to five-stars appeared illogical.According to the government's plans, state-run liquor stores, where men queue up for their daily fix, will be phased out at a rate of ten per cent a year for the next decade, leaving a big hole in the state coffers after alcohol taxes and fees generated more than $1 billion or Rs. 6,000 crore in the 2012-13 financial year.

Bar owners who have taken the government to court say if there is an alcohol ban, tourists will start opting for other regional destinations - perhaps the beaches of nearby Goa or Sri Lanka. A recent survey from travel portal Holiday IQ.com, which polled 5,000 Indians, showed 58 percent of the respondents will change their travel plans because of the new no-boozing policy.But there is little denial of an alcohol problem in Kerala, which has the highest consumption levels in India.