The Uttar Pradesh government has started registration for allotting government-run liquor shops which include country made, foreign liquor, beer and model shops for the next fiscal.
Under the new policy, all registrations would be done online and distribution would be made through e-lottery. There would be no offline registration.
Principal Secretary (Excise) Kalpana Awasthi said in lucknow on Tuesday that in the first phase, registration would end on February 28 and e-lottery would be held on March 5. In the second phase, registration would done between March 7 to 12 and e-lottery would be done on March 14. She said that anyone interested in setting up shops could register on the website - upexciseelottery.govt.in website.
In the new Excise policy, the state government has made it mandatory for vendors to accept digital payments, a move aimed at ensuring that customers were not overcharged.
The move is aimed at ensuring that vendors do not sell alcohol over the maximum retail price. The policy, approved by the state cabinet in January, requires vendors across the state to accept payments through credit and debit cards and other e-payment modes.
The Excise policy is also aimed at increasing liquor sales and revenue, both of which plunged after Supreme Court banned the sale of alcohol along highways.
The regulations are expected to give the state government Rs 20,402.99 crore in revenues in 2018-19 against Rs 15,730 crore in 2017-18. This is an estimated rise of 29.71 per cent, or Rs 4,672.99 crore, in Excise revenue.
An online tendering process and GPS-fitted trucks to check smuggling have also been planned under the new policy. The government has also ended hologram system and introduced track and trace system to monitor the sale and purchase of liquors by retail shops.