AP Cabinet Likely To Clear New Liquor Policy Today

Amaravati: The Cabinet Sub-Committee formed by Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu headed by Excise and Mining Minister Kollu Ravindra will submit the draft excise policy before the State Council of Ministers for approval on September 18.

The panel visited six States to study the policies under implementation there and the reasons why the consumption of illicit liquor and non-duty paid liquor increased in Andhra Pradesh during the past five years since change in government in 2019. The TDP-led government has already announced a New Liquor Policy on October 1.

Briefing the media here on Tuesday, Ravindra said due to restriction in liquor brands allowed for sale at the shops, the government suffered a revenue loss of Rs 19,000 crore. He said the sale of inferior quality brands of choice by the then YSRCP government posed a big health hazard to the people as they had no choice to consume quality brands.

The sub-committee comprising Ministers Gotipatti Ravi Kumar, Kondapalli Srinivas, Nadendla Manohar and Satya Kumar Yadav studied the functioning of government and private liquor shops and the prevailing taxation system in six States including Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Odisha and Telangana. Ravindra said during the YSRCP regime, only J-brands (meaning brands favourable to then Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy) were allowed for sale after promising in the elections the imposition of prohibition and after the polls to impose phase-wise total prohibition.