AP to Soon Notify New Excise Policy Privatising Liquor Sales

Vijayawada:Andhra Pradesh government will shortly issue a notification announcing its new excise policy, wherein private agencies will run retail liquor outlets in the state.

Excise and prohibition director Nishanth Kumar held a video conference with deputy and assistant commissioners of the department on Friday. He issued a series of instructions on how to handle liquor depots and retail outlets by keeping a check on stock levels on regular basis. He asked officials to ensure availability of adequate quantity of stocks of liquor and beer.

The officer said timings set for running liquor depots and retail outlets must be adhered to. Excise staff must ensure that there is no loss of revenue due to non-availability of stocks.

Nishanth Kumar underlined that as per the new excise policy, private parties will run the liquor retail outlets, unlike the earlier practice of government handling them.

He asked officials to keep watch on the safety and security of assets at the retail outlets, including electronic gadgets, POS machines, cash chests and refrigerators.

The excise director asked station house officers of areas in which the liquor outlets are located to keep a close tab on the safety of the outlets.

Nishanth Kumar said if sub-ordinate staff are found negligent, they may be transferred.