Mohali residents to get liquor at doorstep; Punjab excise to start online sale of liquor
Kanwar Inder Singh/ royalpatiala.in/ Chandigarh
Following the footsteps of Maharashtra, the Punjab government on Friday decided to keep a scope for sale of liquor on e-commerce sites, as for the first time it was decided to start an experimental for online sale and delivery of liquor, in the upcoming excise policy for the fiscal year 2020-2021.
Maharashtra was the first Indian state to come up with such kind of policy in the country, to sell online and delivery of liquor.
“To start with, the Punjab excise and taxation department will allow online sale of liquor in one of Punjab’s modern city Mohali , on trial basis “ said Punjab excise and taxation commissioner Vivek Partap Singh. He further said that it would be decided at a later stage as to who would be given license for online delivery and in case there is an objection by any licensee, it would not be implemented.
The policy for the forthcoming fiscal year is seen as trader friendly, as the existing traders in the field who attain 12% excess revenue over the minimum guaranteed revenue (MGR) in the current financial year will get preference in the coming financial year.
A retired excise and taxation official of Punjab government said that “it will also help in reducing growing cases of drunken driving due to which there have been many accidents and resulted in great loss of lives. The alcohol would be delivered just like citizens are getting groceries and vegetables at home”. He further said that illegal sale of liquor may also stop, which causes loss of state revenue.
As per the policy, the price of each bottle of Indian Made Foreign Liquor (IMFL) and Punjab Made Liquor (PML) is expected to go up by Rs. 2 to 5, due to increase in excise duty. However, the increase of 12% in the MGR will also lead to additional increase in the liquor price.
