The Delhi Excise department has collected Rs 768 crore revenue under the old excise regime. (Representational image via Unsplash)The Delhi Excise department has collected Rs 768 crore revenue under the old excise regime through excise duty, value added tax (VAT) on liquor and licence fees within one month of bringing back the old excise regime. The government collected around Rs 1993.14 crore in the eight months under the now scrapped Delhi excise policy 2021-22.
The old excise regime was implemented on September 1, after the new liquor policy 2021-22 was scrapped following probe by central agencies.
The old excise policy was effective in Delhi before November 17, 2021, and it was discontinued after the new liquor policy was implemented under which only private shops were allowed to operate across the city. However, under the old excise regime, the government only allowed government shops to open for the next six months until a new policy come in.
Officials said that the government collected Rs 768 crore revenue till September 30, of which Rs 460 crore was collected from excise duty, Rs140 crore from VAT and remaining was collected through licence fees issued to hotels, bars, wholesalers, clubs and retail vends for six months. Under the old excise regime, only government liquor shops were allowed to open and operate across the city under the four government corporations — Delhi Tourism and Transportation Development Corporation, Delhi State Industrial and Infrastructure Development Corporation, Delhi State Civil Supplies Corporation and Delhi Consumers’ Cooperative Wholesale Store.
Officials said that as compared to the previous policy, the revenue collected is good. “The sale will increase once the festive seasons Navratra and Diwali end. At present, the daily liquor sale is around 8 lakh per day while it was around 14 lakh under the last policy where only private shops were allowed to operate. Further, more brands will get registered and there will be options in the city for tipplers, so the sale is expected to pick up in the coming months,” said an official.
Currently, Delhi has around 460 liquor shops and more than 500 brands have been registered and 1,000 more are expected in the coming months. The department has also launched a mobile app called mAbkari to provide information regarding liquor shops, available brands and locations, the section for filing complaints and feedback for the alcohol users.