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Haryana highway liquor loss Rs 1,340 cr
Pradeep Sharma
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, May 2
With the closure of nearly 1,400 liquor vends along the national and state highways on the direction of the Punjab and Haryana High Court across Haryana, the fund-starved Haryana Government will be facing a excise revenue loss of about Rs 1,340 crore.

Excise and Taxation Commissioner Sudhir Rajpal stated at a meeting of District Excise and Taxation Commissioners, presided over by Excise and Taxation Minister Kiran Choudhry, here today that out of total 3500 vends, as many as 1,399 (711 along state highways and 688 along the national highways) had been removed. The contractors were allotted liquor vends for two years (2013-14 and 2014-15).

Against a target of Rs 3,000 crore, the state had collected the excise revenue of Rs 2,700 crore during 2013-14. The overall loss of Rs 1,340 crore revenue on account of shifting of liquor vends is set to deliver a jolt to the Hooda Government at a time when a large number of development projects are underway in the state. Meanwhile, Choudhry has directed the officers to check illegal sale of liquor on the highways.

Official sources said losses would come down significantly through various measures to be adopted by the government. A revenue of over Rs 2,100 crore has been netted through licence fee from vends for this financial year.

Acting on a PIL, the Punjab and Haryana High Court had, earlier this year, asked Punjab and Haryana to ensure that no liquor vend was allowed to operate along the state highways. Later, the Supreme Court had endorsed the high court orders.

1,400 highway outlets removed