Excise Reforms by Punjab Govt: Bumper Govt Income boost and stopping Illegal Liquor

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Last Updated: 19 April 2025

41.4% jump in 1st year of new Excise Revenue in FY 2022-23, despite new policy was applicable only for 9 months of the year[1]

Impact of Punjab’s excise policy on Neighbouring UT Chandigarh:

-- 2023-24: No takers for over 50+% vends for the 1st time in History for 1st round; 20% went unsold[2]
-- 2024-25: No takers for over 15% vends, despite lower prices[2:1]

Year Revenue Annual growth rate Party
2025-26[3] Est ₹11800 crores 16% AAP
2024-25[4] ₹10,743.72 16.36% AAP
2023-24 ₹9232.81 ~5% AAP
2022-23[1:1] ₹8,841.4 crore 41.4% AAP
2021-22[3:1] ₹6,254 Total 42% in 5 Years Congress
2016-17[3:2] ₹4,400 crore - Akali
2015-16[3:3] ₹4,796 crore - Akali
2006-07[3:4] ₹1,363 crore - Congress
2001-02[3:5] ₹1,462 crore - Congress

Comparison with prev govt[5]

Party in Power Time in Power CAGR (Annual growth rate) Total Collection
AAP 2022-2025 19.14% Rs 28,000 crore[6]
Congress 2017-2022 6.9% Rs 27,395 crore[6:1]
Akali 2012-2017 9.8% Rs 20,545 crore[6:2]

Reforms

1. New Excise Policy

  • Similar Policy to Delhi Excise Policy approved by Punjab Cabinet on 7 June 2022[7]
  • Punjab's excise revenue Rs 8,841.4 crore for FY 2022-23[1:2]

2. Technology to plug the leakages in Excise collection[8]

Punjab Excise Dept will adopt technologies like ERP & POS to enhance efficiency

  • Minister Harpal Singh Cheema visited Kerala with officers and also held a meeting with the Kerala Excise Minister M B Rajesh
  • Punjab Government is very keen to adopt new software based technological solutions to streamline the process of Excise revenue collection

3. QR Code Label Verification App[9]

  • As a part of Track and Trace project, mobile app ‘Excise QR Code Label Verification Citizen App’ launched
  • Ensuring that no in-genuine, counterfeit or no duty paid liquor could be sold in the state of Punjab

4. Sniffer dogs to detect illicit liquor

Special Pilot project:

  • The objective of the excise department was to check whether the dogs inducted into the squad were capable of detecting hootch and it proved to be successful[10]
    • Sniffer dogs detected illicit liquor and recovered 3.3 lakh litre hootch[10:1]
    • Sniffer dog squad recovers 17,000-kg ‘lahan’, 320 litres illicit liquor[11]

Approval & SOP being drafted

  • 50 Lakh budget allocated for acquiring dogs allocated
  • Sniffer dog squads to be ready on call
  • SOPs being prepared for this

25 Nov 2023: Punjab Excise Department signs agreement to provide them with special sniffer dogs capable of detecting illicit liquor

5. Strict Vigil on illegal liquor

  • Effective drives being carried out by the department with use of technology like drones and proper coordination with civil & police authorities[1:3]
  • Drone technology was being used to capture real-time images of inaccessible locations where illicit was brewed[1:4]

April 1, 2022 - February 8, 2023:[1:5]

  • 6,317 FIRs were lodged by the Excise Department
  • 6,114 arrests were made
  • 1,48,693 litres of illicit liquor was detected and 5,06,607 litres of “lahan” was recovered & destroyed

April - Sep 2023[12]

  • 3156 FIRs
  • 3050 arrests have been made
  • 248938 litres of illicit liquor & 151891 litres of lahan recovered and destroyed
  • 90168 litres of PML/IMFL/Beer/Spirit have been seized
  • 125 working stills (bhattis) have been detected and destroyed.

References:

  1. https://www.tribuneindia.com/news/punjab/excise-revenue-jumped-by-41-last-fiscal-cheema-494892 ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎

  2. https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/chandigarh/chandigarh-faces-decline-in-excise-collections-amid-competitive-policies-in-punjab/articleshow/118991435.cms ↩︎ ↩︎

  3. https://www.hindustantimes.com/cities/chandigarh-news/excise-revenue-surpasses-10-cr-for-1st-time-says-punjab-finance-minister-harpal-cheema-101742672286052.html ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎

  4. https://www.hindustantimes.com/cities/chandigarh-news/excise-revenue-jumped-by-16-last-fiscal-cheema-101743517900853.html ↩︎

  5. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XV96oX8CN_U ↩︎

  6. https://yespunjab.com/budget-reflects-govts-commitment-to-transform-punjab-harpal-cheema/ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎

  7. https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/other-states/punjabs-new-excise-policy-to-tap-actual-potential-of-liquor-trade/article65507576.ece ↩︎

  8. https://www.babushahi.com/full-news.php?id=167181 ↩︎

  9. https://indianexpress.com/article/cities/chandigarh/punjab-app-to-track-every-bottle-of-liquor-qr-code-8341553/ ↩︎

  10. https://www.hindustantimes.com/cities/chandigarh-news/ludhiana-dog-squad-sniffs-out-3-3-lakh-litre-hooch-along-banks-of-sutlej-river-101671394214119.html ↩︎ ↩︎

  11. https://www.hindustantimes.com/cities/chandigarh-news/punjab-police-and-excise-department-seize-17-000-kg-of-lahan-used-in-illicit-liquor-production-in-dasuya-raids-101686308012966.html ↩︎

  12. https://www.babushahi.com/full-news.php?id=171154 ↩︎

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