Barely a month after the Bengal government pruned the list of dry days to four-and-a-half days from 13, liquor stores want one more dry day - Ashtami.

The reason: shortage of manpower to run stores on that day.

The All Bengal Excise Licensees' Association has urged chief minister Mamata Banerjee to include Ashtami as a dry day.

"We appreciate the excise department's move to keep retail shops open for more number of days. We have remained closed on Ashtami in the past. Our staff members want a holiday on this day so that they can take part in the festivity," Pradyut Kumar Saha, the general secretary of the association, said. "We have written to the chief minister and placed our request before the excise directorate."

Close to 4,000 establishments are members of the association. Shop owners will find it difficult to get the requisite number of employees to cater to the demand of customers, he said.

Liquor is always in demand, more so in the festive season, a chamber of commerce official said. "It is a highly competitive business. All shop owners should be on board.... Now, the government decision on this appeal remains to be seen."