HYDERABAD: The State Government on Saturday issued a Government Order (GO) for the allotment of retail liquor (A4) shops for the period of 2021-23. The licences will be valid from December 1 to November 30, 2023. The GO also announced shop allocation reservation of 10 per cent for Scheduled Castes (SC), five per cent for Scheduled Tribes (ST) and 15 per cent for Goud community. In the meeting of Excise Department officials, a decision to set up 350 new wine shops was also taken.
An A4 liquor shop will be allotted in each category in a district by the drawing of lots by the concerned District Collector as per the issued guidelines. The number of shops will be on the basis of the population of the district.The non-refundable licence fee for each application is Rs 2 lakh, while the retail excise tax will be the same as the previous licence period. Also, the yearly special retail excise tax per annum will be Rs 5 lakh.Applicants can make payments in six installments instead of four, in which payments must be done every two months.
Eligible applicants have to submit 25 per cent of the amount as excise tax for one year. Eligible applicants have to pay the full amount on the same day of the drawing of lots. An aspirant who wants to apply for more than one application can apply with the original challan fee for the application, which will be Rs 2 lakh for each application.There is also a provision for converting A4 liquor shops into walk-in stores on the payment of Rs 5 lakh per annum for each shop. The business hours of A4 liquor shops shall remain the same as they were in the previous license period
Commissioner holds meet
Apart from mulling over the reservations for marginalised communities, Excise Commissioner Sarfaraz Ahmed on Saturday talked about the new wine shops which will set up all over the State. The Prohibition and Excise Department has decided to set up an additional 350 wine shops across the State as alcohol consumption has increased in the last two years. Currently, the liquor is being sold in about 2,216 shops and Rs 1,200 crore of revenue is being generated. The government has clarified that there will be no change in licence and application fees.
Drawing of lots for allocation
An A4 liquor shop will be allotted in each category in a district by the drawing of lots by the District Collector. The number of shops will be based on the district’s population