Patna, March 5: This Holi, look before you pour beer into your thirsty throat. Bottles surpassing shelflife have reached some retail stores in the city, sipping which can cause health hazards.

More than 7,000 cases of two popular beer brands, manufactured on September 1, 2011, were dispatched to 20 shops late evening on February 29 — the day their shelf life expired. A beer bottle is best for consumption up to six months of its manufacturing date.

According to the documents in possession of The Telegraph, 6,843 cases of one brand and 256 cases of the other were dispatched by Bihar State Beverages Corporation Limited (BSBCL) — the wholesaler of foreign liquor and beer in the state since 2007. It functions under the department of excise of the state government. Each case contained 12 bottles of beer.

Krishna Paswan, the assistant commissioner of excise, Patna, said he had no information about this. “Till now, I have not received any complaint on beer bottles surpassing their shelf life being sold. I will be sending inspectors for inspection soon. If such bottles are being sold, they will be taken off the shelves and further investigations will be conducted,” the officer told The Telegraph.

Nawal Kishore Singh, one of the oldest liquor traders of the state capital, told The Telegraph: “The beer bottles surpassing their shelf life reached the retail stores in connivance with some of the retail store owners, the representatives of the manufacturing companies as well as that of the BSBCL. The bottles were dispatched from the BSBCL depot at Danapur on February 29 late evening. The supply continued until late night. The bottles surpassed their expiry date at 12midnight on February 29. But instead of destroying them, they were despatched to the retail stores.”

Singh said: “The alcohol trade here works in the first come, first out (Fifo) mode. The brands coming first with a particular batch number have to be exhausted first. Then only the next lot can be touched. In case of all alcohol brands, including beer, if a stock remains at the depot beyond 120 days, the BSBCL charges the manufacturing companies Rs 2 for each case. In case of beer bottles, once the six-month period is over, they should be destroyed. Some manufacturers do not want to pay up Rs 2 for each case and woo retailers to sell the expired beer bottles. They also grease the palm of some workers at the depot to dispatch the beer bottles after their expiry date. This has been continuing for quite sometime now.”

The representatives of the BSBCL, including depot manager N.K. Sinha, did not take calls from The Telegraph. But Ashok Kumar, the manager of a retail liquor store, said it was okay to sell expired beers. “We have eight shops in all in the city and I do not mind selling beer bottles six month after they are manufactured. We get few such bottles from the depots and they go off the shelves within a day or two. We have not received any complaint from any consumer so far,” Ashok said.

Doctors, however, cautioned against consuming beer surpassing their shelf life. Dr Ashotush Sharan, a general physician, said its consumption could lead to health problems. “Since beer is manufactured through fermentation, consuming it after the expiry can cause food poisoning, acute diarrhoea and gastroenteritis. After expiry date, the percentage of liquor in beer becomes unstable and can lead to alcohol intolerance. If beer beyond expiry date is consumed regularly, acute diarrhoea can lead to death,” the doctor said.