Contractors firm on demands as Capt okays excise policy

Ruchika M Khanna

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, May 13

Amid the political-bureaucratic stand-off, Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh today announced amendments to the excise policy for 2020-21. With several issues raised by the liquor contractors before the stand-off remaining unresolved, many have rejected the announcements and threatened to keep the liquor vends shut.

Only 50-60 per cent of the 5,800 liquor vends across Punjab are expected to be reopened on Thursday.

Ministers Sukhbinder Singh Sarkaraia and Vijay Inder Singla along with officials of the Excise and Taxation Department met some of the liquor contractors in Jalandhar this evening, asking them to open the vends.

The government delegation is learnt to have conveyed that they would not be demanding licence fee immediately. It also assured the contractors that liquor smuggling from neighbouring states would be curbed.

A contractor said, “While the decision to open vends will be taken by all contractors, many are now ready to leave the contracts, mainly those having sites near migrant labour settlements. With the departure of migrants, these vends, which otherwise saw good sale of Punjab made liquor, will incur losses.”

On the other hand, Anil Mahajan, a Hoshiarpur-based contractor said, “I am suffering a loss of Rs15 lakh each day. I have decided to open the vend as I don’t see the government agreeing to any discounts.”

The amendments to the excise policy included providing adjustments to licencees for losses incurred for the lockdown period from March 23-May 6; not extending the period of contract of liquor vends beyond March 31, 2021; setting up a group of ministers comprising Manpreet Badal, Vijay Inder Singla and Sukhbinder Singh Sarkaria, to consider the levying of Covid cess on liquor; and leaving the option of home delivery of liquor on the licencees.

The contractors said the government neither reduced the minimum guaranteed quota or the minimum guaranteed revenue for the coming months nor acceded to their demand for extending the year of implementation of the policy by 36 days, beyond March 31, 2021.

“None of our demands have been met. In Ludhiana, majority of the contractors have decided against opening vends,” said Varinder Sharma, a representative for Ludhiana liquor contractors.

A meeting of the group of ministers is likely to be held on the issue on Friday.

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