55% liquor vends in Chandigarh go unsold, only 43 find takers

Dushyant Singh Pundir

Chandigarh, March 15

The UT Excise and Taxation Department failed to find buyers for nearly 55 per cent of its liquor vends that went up for auction here today. High excise duty and VAT in comparison to Punjab are to blame for the lukewarm response to the auction.

Only 43 of the 95 liquor vends put up for auction by the department could go under the hammer. The highest bid of Rs 11.65 crore was received for the liquor vend at Palsora village, against a reserve price of Rs 9.60 crore.

In all, 62 bids were received for 43 liquor vends/licencing units having a reserve price of Rs 202.35 crore. The department collected a total revenue of Rs 221.59 crore in the shape of licence fee, registering an increase of nearly 9.5% over the reserve price. A sum of Rs 2.17 crore was collected in the form of non-refundable participation fee.

After the first round of bidding, the department is in the process of inviting tenders for the second round from March 16.

The department is also planning to implement other measures outlined in the UT Excise Policy, such as granting new licences, label approval and permits/passes online. This will eliminate the need for licencees to physically visit the office, thereby promoting transparency and ease of doing business. In 2022, the department had earned Rs 420 crore against the reserve price of Rs 344 crore. Interestingly, the liquor vend at Dhanas, located near Mullanpur, which fetched the highest bid over the past two years failed to find any takers this time. Last year, the Dhanas vend had received the highest-ever bid of Rs 12.78 crore against the reserve price of Rs 10.39 crore, whereas in 2021, the vend had again received the highest bid of Rs 11.55 crore, against the reserve price of Rs 7.95 crore.

Advocate Sachit Jaiswal, who deals in excise and taxation matters, said higher licence fee in UT, impact of Punjab Excise Renewal Policy, no deduction in liquor quota, no reduction in VAT and excise duty were some of the factors responsible for poor show. Also, the remaining quota of the unsold shops would be transferred to the sold liquor vends. In view of all this, a number of liquor licencees stayed away from the tender process for 2023-24, he added.

As there was negligible VAT and excise duty in Punjab, most of the liquor contractors shifted base to the neighbouring state, said a liquor contractor, adding the UT Excise Policy was also not very friendly.

A department official said the Punjab Excise Renewal Policy had impacted the auction in the city. Also, some local contractors were taking part in auctions in Punjab and Himachal Pradesh.

Admn rakes in Rs 221.59 cr

• n 62 bids received for 43 liquor vends with reserve price of Rs 202.35 cr
• n UT collects Rs 221.59 cr, registering an increase of 9.5% over reserve price
• n In 2022, UT had earned Rs 420 cr against reserve price of Rs 344 cr
• n UT will now invite tenders for second round of auction from March 16

UT Excise policy not friendly

There is open quota in Punjab, but UT has capped it at 18L boxes a year. Rates are uniform in Mohali & P’kula. Why will people from these areas buy liquor from UT? — A liquor contractor