The Harish Rawat Government has approved what observers call a half-baked new excise policy during Friday’s Cabinet meeting. The new policy will come into force on April 15. The current excise policy will continue till that date. The State Government expects that over Rs 1,800 cr would come to the State coffers by way of revenue from the excise department in the year 2015-16, the Chief Secretary, N Ravishankar, disclosed after the Cabinet meeting was over late on Friday night.
Seemingly rattled over the Fl-2 (foreign liquor wholesale) hogging negative media glare, the Cabinet has decided to go for routing liquor to be distributed in the districts through Garhwal Mandal Vikas Nigam (GMVN) in Garhwal division and Kumaon Mandal VIkas Nigam (KMVN) in Kumaon division.
Besides, the Cabinet has constituted a Cabinet sub- committee with the Chief Minister Harish Rawat at its head to firm up the policy about how to execute it on the ground. But on one thing the Cabinet is firm is that the foreign liquor will be distributed through GMVN and KMVN in two regions, respectively.
It would be pertinent to mention here that earlier, the Cabinet had constituted a committee with Chief Secretary N Ravishankar at its head. Meanwhile, the State Government had sought public opinion through advertisement in local dailies. Things were on the boil as the Opposition had launched a broadside at the state government during the just-concluded budget session of the Assembly, saying that the government is trying to promote monopoly over the liquor trade.
The state government skirted the issue, saying that they were yet to firm up the fine print of the excise policy. However, during Friday’s meeting, the cabinet put its seal over the new excise policy, which will be enforced from April 15. The new policy is expected to fetch Rs 1800 crore in the next financial year. It was also decided that the current excise policy would be in force tillApril 15.