Cabinet panel to shape excise policy

HYDERABAD: The state will have a radically new excise policy from next month, ending the auction regime ruled by liquor syndicates. Rocked by revelations of bribery by liquor traders to carry on with their profiteering, the government has decided to nip all that. In its first decisive step towards ushering in reforms in the liquor trade, the state government issueed a GO Tuesday constituting a five-member sub-committee of the cabinet to recommend changes in the excise policy. The members of the subcommittee are: Anam Ramnarayana Reddy (finance), P Sabita indra Reddy (home), D Sridhar Babu (civil supplies), C Ramachandraiah (endowments) and M Venkataramana (excise and prohibition). The principal secretary in the Excise Department will be the Convenor of the committee. The excise year begins on July 1. Licences for retail outlets are issued in June. The state government is actively considering reverting to issue of licences through draw of lots. The price of each liquor vend will be predecided. If there is more than one applicant, the successful bidder will be decided through a draw of lots. Speaking to Express, excise and prohibition minister Mopidevi Venkataramana said the sub-committee will meet in three days’ time to discuss alternatives to the present policy. Three or four draft excise reports have already been prepared for the perusal of the committee. Any objections or suggestions made by the cabinet ministers will be included in the draft policy. After finalising the excise policy, it would be placed before the Cabinet for approval. Mopidevi said the state government intends to have a new excise policy that has more teeth to replace the present flawed system. Preparatory to the policy making exercise, teams of senior excise officials visited Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Kerala and Karnataka to study the policies in vogue there.