Uttar Pradesh: ‘Not opened shops just for money’

The state government has allowed re-opening of liquor shops to save people from consuming illicit liquor and sanitizers, claimed finance minister Suresh Khanna . During an exclusive chat with Subhash Mishra, the minister, who also hold portfolios of parliamentary affairs and medical education, discussed at length why the government increased prices of liquor and petroleum products. An excerpt:
What are the reasons of reopening of liquor shops even in the red zone of the state?
It is true that revenue receipts of the state government have plummeted due to the nationwide lockdown. Closure of liquor shops was also posing a huge financial loss to the state exchequer. But it was not the sole criterion behind the permission to reopen liquor shops. Recently, three persons had died after consuming sanitizer in Modi Nagar and three others had died in Kanpur after consuming illicit liquor. The people’s life is much more important than revenue.
The state has increased prices of liquor and petroleum products. Will this hike be sufficient to compensate the revenue loss of April?
The increase in excise and VAT in petrol and diesel would give an additional Rs 4,000 crore to the government. It is not sufficient, but the Yogi government does not want to burden people with steep hikes. This is the reason why we did not opt for major increase.
How will the state government recover revenue losses beyond Rs 4,000 crore?
The government is committed to financial restructuring of the state. But currently we are not in favour of imposing additional burden on our people. Business activities are gradually returning to normal. Work has begun at construction sites and markets are opening again. All these commercial activities will cover the government’s revenue losses soon.
Will the government drop some of its politically ambitious projects entailing investment of thousands of crores?
The Yogi government is committed to the people’s welfare. We would also ensure that all announcements made for the state’s development would be met.