Excise dept to focus on increasing production & setting up bottling plants to increase revenue
PIONEER NEWS SERVICE | Dehradun
The Excise department has earned a revenue of Rs 4,360 crore for the financial year 2024-25 which is Rs 322 crore more than the revenue earned by the department last year and about Rs 1,100 crore more than the revenue collected in the FY 2021-22.
For FY 2024-25, the department had set a target of Rs 4,439 crore which means the department missed it by mere Rs 79 crore.
In the new Excise policy, the State government has set a revenue target of Rs 5,060 crore for the FY 2025-26 which is 14 per cent more than the target of previous year.
The commissioner Excise, HC Semwal told The Pioneer that the department was able to collect good revenue which was very close to the target by collective efforts of the employees and officers of the department. He said that this year the target is in excess of Rs 5,000 crore. Semwal said that the department will focus on taking action against illegal liquor and overpricing. Semwal averred that in order to further increase the revenue collection the department is planning to attract investors and business houses to open new production units and bottling plants in the State.
He added that for increasing self-employment opportunities in the mountainous areas of the State, the government has decided to exempt the winery units set up by local people from excise duty for next 15 years in the new Excise policy. He said that apart from creating employment opportunities the winery units will prove economically beneficial for farmers and horticulturists. Under the new policy, the State government has offered many concessions to the malt and spirit industries in the mountainous areas. He added that 80 per cent employment will be provided in the plants set up in the State.
Semwal said that Uttarakhand is now moving forward from being a consumer State to a producer State and two new plants will soon come up in Udham Singh Nagar district for production of power alcohol (Ethanol).
