BHOPAL: It surely is music for tipplers in Madhya Pradesh . For once, amid talks of a serious financial crisis gripping the state, liquor would be spared from price hike The state government has let it known that the new liquor policy will not hike prices of the tipsy drink. Successive governments have taxed liquor heavily to mop up revenue and it is second most expensive in the country in MP after Karnataka.Minister for commercial taxes, Brajendra Singh Rathore said the new excise policy would be introduced soon.He said, “The new policy would be framed keeping in mind all aspects so that revenue of government does not take a hit and neither the common man is troubled.”A top official in the excise department told TOI, “BJP governments considered liquor to be evil and wanted to force people not to consume it. It was like moral policing. The Congress government on the other hand has no intention to overprize liquor by making it expensive every year. Government would surely not promote use of liquor but at the same wants to rationalise its prices.” Excise policy in MP is delayed this year due to change of state government. Generally, the policy is finalized by February, but the state government is still working on it.Congress government aims to bring out the policy in two phases this year. The old policy will be continued with till Lok Sabha polls, while major changes would be made after the polls.Liquor is a major source of income for the state government. For the year 2018-19, government had set a target of Rs 9,000 crore from excise duty on sale of liquor. The total revenue generated from it in 2017-18 was Rs 8,200 crore. Officials in the excise department said the yearly revenue target is increased by 10% to 15% every year. Revenue from excise duty on liquor has almost doubled in the past six years. In 2013-2014, excise department generated a total revenue of Rs 5,900 crore.Officials pleading anonymity said they are optimistic that revenue collection would not be hit by not hiking the price as they would streamline the model after reassessing the profit of margins of traders. BJP government had been in news for its decisions on sale of liquor. In August 2017, MP banned liquor shops along the banks of the Narmada. The government also announced that local police stations will have a list of routine customers of every liquor shop.The government sent a team of administrative officers to Gujarat and Bihar to study the impact of prohibition in these states. It triggered intense speculation about whether MP would become the third state to go for prohibition. However, the then government too evaded a direct reply to the question and later came out with a stand that it would go in for a “phased prohibition”.

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