Plea for quick steps to meet excise revenue target in Odisha

Seeking quick steps to improve performance in excise sector, Odisha's Excise Minister Niranjan Pujari said that against a target of Rs 1900 crore for 2013-14, the excise revenue collected by December 2013 was a mere Rs 1200 crore.
Reviewing the performance of excise superintendents here yesterday, the minister stressed on measures to meet the target in next one and half month.
Pujari also asked the excise superintendents to come down heavily on bootleggers and persons illegally dealing with intoxicated drugs.
Sources said fall in spending capacity of people, slowdown in key sectors like mining and growing consciousness among people have had a telling effect on liquor consumption in the State thereby, putting a big question mark on excise revenue target.

Seeking excise discipline, the minister emphasized on curbing illegal trade in liquor. He hoped with coordinated efforts of police, excise and drug controller personnel the illegal trade in liquor would come under check. He asked the excise superintendents to be more vigilant on this direction.
It was revealed in the meeting that during the 2013 calendar year at least 193 NDPS cases were registered in the State in which 195 persons were arrested. On the other hand, the excise sleuths raiding several paces during the same period had registered as many as 12488 excise cases in which 9063 persons were arrested. Sources further said that during 2013, as many as 9335 kg of ganja and a little over 1700 gms of brown sugar were seized in the State.

Excise Commissioner A K Tarenia calling upon excise superintendents to be more vigilant said that liquor pouches were now readily available in pan shops and this had to be totally eradicated before the general elections scheduled in next couple of months.
Additional Chief Electoral officer Hariballav Mishra informed that the excise superintendents had been appointed as nodal officers for the ensuing general elections.
He said all the excise superintends should keep a vigil on the daily sale of each liquor shop coming under their jurisdiction and in case of any unusual hike in sale is noticed, proper and timely enquiry should be conducted and appropriate action taken.