New Excise policy approved in Punjab

The Punjab Cabinet today approved new excise policy for next financial year, which will fetch Rs 4,671 crore of revenue from liquor, up by Rs 724 crore as against last fiscal's revenue collection.
The new excise policy was approved in the Cabinet meeting chaired by the Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal here.
Disclosing this here today, a spokesperson said this year, the group size (which is a unit for allotment of vend) would be reduced and the number of groups would almost be doubled over the previous year.
This will result in competition amongst various licensees and bring down the retail prices of liquor.

In another major move, the government has fixed the rates of liquor to be sold during functions at marriage palaces.
"These liquor rates will be displayed at the website of the department. If any consumer complains that a licensee has sold him liquor at a rate higher than these rates for a function at a marriage palace, a fine of Rs 1 lakh will be imposed on the licensee. For second offence, the fine will be doubled and in case of third offence, the licence of such vend will be cancelled," he said.

To bring about transparency in receiving applications for allotment of vends, now the banks would also be authorised to receive applications.

This would be in addition to the existing system of receipt of applications in the AETC offices and enable the applicant to go to any of the authorised bank branches to submit application for any group of any district.
The Department expects to collect Rs 50 crore extra as a result of this decision, he said. In order to reduce rates of IMFL, the department has reduced the rates of extra licence fee on IMFL and has tried to bring them close to those prevailing in the neighbouring state of Haryana.
The number of vends has been frozen at the same level as last year. The quota of country liquor has been increased from 920 lakh proof litres to 950 lakh proof litres. The quota of IMFL has been increased from 440 lakh proof litres to 450 lakh proof litres.

In another decision, the Cabinet also gave ex-post facto approval for the creation of the Post of Agriculture Commissioner in the Department of the Agriculture to promote agriculture diversification program across the state.
The Cabinet also gave nod for ex post facto approval to the proposal of enhancing the upper age of the Chairman-cum- Managing Director of the Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL) and Punjab State Transmission Corporation Limited (PSTCL), from 62 to 65 years.
Likewise, the upper age limits of all the Directors of PSPCL and PSTCL has also been enhanced from 62 to 65 years.
To develop the state as an education hub in the region, the Cabinet also gave its nod to draft a bill for setting up 'Private Self Financed Rayat Bahara University'.