At fourth auction in Chandigarh, only seven of 36 liquor vends go

Chandigarh, March 31

Even after reducing the reserve price by 6% to 10%, the UT Excise and Taxation Department could manage to sell only seven of the 36 remaining liquor vends in its fourth auction today.

The liquor vend at Kajheri village fetched a premium of a mere Re 1. It was auctioned at Rs 4,68,58,421, against the reserve price of Rs 4,68,58,420.

Of the 95 liquor vends, 66 have been auctioned so far, while 29 remain unsold. In the past four auctions, the department has earned Rs 334 crore, against the reserve price of Rs 311 crore, generating a revenue of Rs 23 crore.

The department will now hold the fifth auction by further slashing the reserve price by 3% to 5%. On Friday, the department earned Rs 36.38 crore, against the reserve price of Rs 35.89 crore.

The seven liquor vends auctioned are in Sectors 8 (internal market), 15, 27-C and 38-D, Industrial Area, Phase-1, Mauli Jagran colony and Kajheri village.

The liquor vend in Sector 8 (internal market) fetched a bid of Rs 7,73,01,999, against the reserve price of Rs 7,72,91,612, a premium of Rs 10,000.

In the four auctions held on March 15, 21, 27 and 31, the department has managed to sell only 66 vends. The department is planning the fifth round of auction for the remaining 29 vends and will further reduce the reserve price.

For financial year 2023-24, the department has fixed a target of Rs 830 crore for liquor vends’ licence fee. But from the first three auctions, it had earned only Rs 334 crore, leaving a revenue gap of Rs 496 crore. Last year, the department had held seven auctions, yet three of the 96 vends went unsold.

The liquor vend at Dhanas, located near Mullanpur, which fetched the highest bid in the past two years failed to find takers this time again. Last year, the vend had received the highest-ever bid of Rs12.78 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.