Hic, Hic Hoorah for Yogi coffers!
UP richer with record growth in liquor sale
Despite the Covid pandemic and a slowdown in the economy, liquor sales in Uttar Pradesh are on the rise. In the last fiscal, the excise revenue of the Yogi Government had zoomed to a record level. The assembly poll in the state has also brought cheers to liquor barons with the increased sales during January and February this year.
According to the figures of the state’s excise department, there has been a 20 per cent increase in liquor sales in 2021-22. In fiscal 2021-22, the net contribution of revenue from liquor sale to the state coffer has been Rs36,028.44 crore whereas in the previous year it was Rs30,061.44 crore. The increase in revenue has been Rs6,147 crore, which is a bumper record in itself.
According to the excise dept officials, the maximum sale of liquor was recorded after the assembly poll was announced early this year. In January, alone the state government earned a revenue of Rs3,471.41 crore from liquor sales. In February this year, there has been a tremendous rise in the sale of country-made foreign liquor and beer. In February, beer sales grew by 58.8 per cent while country and Indian-made foreign liquor (IMFL) sales increased by 13 and 18 per cent respectively. In Jan and Feb this year, the excise department earned 114.9 per cent more revenue than the fixed target.
Notably, after relaxation in the Covid restrictions, the Yogi govt had increased the opening time for liquor by one hour in January this year. The excise officials said new liquor shops were given licences during the five-year tenure of CM Yogi, the number stood at 2,076. However, in the Akhilesh Yadav government during 2012-17, 2,566 new liquor shops were given licences. Earlier, during the regime of Mayawati, 3,621 new liquor shops were given licences.
In the first five-year tenure of CM Yogi, from 2017 to 2022, the excise revenue had registered a growth of 258 per cent. Despite three waves of the Covid pandemic, liquor sales in UP were on the high.