Uttarakhand shuffles excise policy: Increases license fee on selling foreign liquor

Dehradun, April 8: Now selling foreign liquor will put a burden on the seller’s pockets as license fee has been increased along with the reduction in the turnover limit for the departmental stores in Uttarakhand. The excise policy has been shuffled in the state on Friday.

Briefing media persons on Friday, Minister for Urban Development and government spokesperson Madan Kaushik said that the amendments were proposed by the Department of Excise in the existing excise policy and the Cabinet gave its nod.

 

“The department felt that the turnover limit fixed at Rs 5 crore for departmental stores in order to sell foreign liquor along with groceries and other utility articles was proving to be quite burdensome and costly. There was the poor response to due to the high turnover fixed. So we have reduced the limit from Rs 5 crore to Rs 50 lakh,” said Kaushik.

 

In addition, the Cabinet also gave nod for increasing the license fee for liquor for departmental stores from the existing Rs 3 lakh to Rs 5 lakh.

 

CM Trivendra Rawat has appealed the media as well people of Uttarakhand not to take this step in the wrong as it is a positive step in existing policy. In his tweet, he said that “I appeal to my media peers and the public to avoid misleading or disinformation on the issue-FL-5 M/S. Modifications made to the DS policy is not on the sale of alcohol in grocery stores; Rather, it is an honest and transparent step to prevent misuse of the existing policy.”