In an attempt to clamp down on illegal sale and smuggling of liquor in the State, the Haryana government has decided to set up an enforcement wing which will be headed by the Excise and Taxation Commissioner.
State Additional Chief Secretary (Excise and Taxation Department) Sanjeev Kaushal said on Monday that though the department along with the police has been carrying out enforcement activities throughout the State, the setting up of an enforcement wing would go a long way in keeping a check on illegal sale and smuggling of liquor.
Under the State’s excise policy for the year 2018-19, Mr. Kaushal announced an increase in the basic quota of country liquor from 950 lakh proof litres to 1,000 lakh proof litres and of Indian Made Foreign Liquor from 550 lakh proof litres to 600 lakh proof litres.
Retail outlets
“The number of retail outlets for CL and IMFL would remain the same as 2017-18,” he said.
Mr. Kaushal said under the new policy, a licencee has been allowed to convert a maximum of 10% of his CL quota to IMFL quota. “The excise duty on CL has been increased from ₹28 to ₹44 per PL this year, whereas on IMFL it has been increased from ₹44-200 per PL to ₹49-210 per PL. However, there is no hike in the annual fee of bar licences in the form of L-4 and L-5 granted to restaurants and hotels of three-star ratings and above,” he added.
Terming the year 2017-18 successful in terms of excise revenue, Mr. Kaushal said the State is expected to earn a revenue of ₹5,682 crore, including VAT, up to February this year.
“The excise revenue of the State for the year 2016-17 was 11.71%, which has been increased to 13% in the year 2017-18,” he said.
Mr. Kaushal added that the number of liquor vends has been brought down to 2,323.
