Excise from liquor too lucrative!
STAFF REPORTER
Guwahati, Dec 27: At a time when the Supreme Court has ordered closure of all liquor shops along tiol and state highways across the State, the Assam government with an eye to generate more excise revenue, is planning to reduce the number of dry days from 15 to four next year.
Sources said that under the new Assam Excise Rule, 2016, the number of dry days in a year will be only four days.
“Except on Republic Day, Independence Day and the birth anniversaries of Mahatma Gandhi (October 2) and Srimanta Sankardev, there will be no dry days in the State,” sources revealed.
The State government has already notified the Assam Excise Rules, 2016 (based on Assam Excise Act, 2000), which will replace the Assam Excise Rules, 1945 (based on the Assam Excise Act, 1910).
Sources further said that according to new excise rules, the time for opening wine shops has also been changed from 2 pm to 11 am.
The Assam government gets Rs 1,200 crore on average as revenue every year from the Excise department.
Excise remains one of the major sources of income for the State government, besides transport, forests, mines and minerals.
Sources said change in the tax structure has also been made keeping in view neighbouring states like Meghalaya and Aruchal Pradesh where liquor is sold at lower prices than Assam.
The Excise department has observed that a large chunk of liquor, meant for these two states, is regularly diverted to Assam. Sources added that the Excise department has also prepared a new country liquor policy. From now onwards, every liquor bottle will carry a hologram.
It may be mentioned that expressing concern over nearly 1.5 lakh deaths every year in road mishaps, a Supreme Court bench led by Chief Justice TS Thakur had recently ordered that no new liquor vend shall come up along the highways within 500 metre radius, while those already having licenses will have to shut shop by April 1, 2017.