THE JHARKHAND STORY DESK
Daltonganj, August 1: It’s a minimum guaranteed revenue worth 112 crore of rupees from the sale of the beverages/ liquor in Palamu district beginning September 1 till 31st March 2026.
Guaranteed Revenue and Retailer Agreement
From September 1 onwards, 70 liquor shops of the government here in Palamu will be run by the retailers joining this fray through the process of the lottery to be completed and over in the ongoing month of August.
Secretary of Excise and Prohibition Department Amitabh Kaushal said, “The state government is going for an agreement with the retailers for a period ending March 31, 2030. It’s no mean thing.”
However, he reminded that the retailers will have to get a renewal of the licence every year. It will be a hassle-free job for the retailers.
The renewal of the licence per annum will see a hike in revenue by 10 per cent per retailer/ retail shop.
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Smooth Transition and Border Surveillance
Excise sources said the transition of the shops from the manpower agency to the excise department was very smooth and trouble-free. There was no chaos anywhere during the transition. No boozer came crying for not getting his bottle of liquor.
Sources said the Palamu Excise Superintendent, Sanjit Kumar Deo and his team quite limited in number, did a good job in the transition of the shops from the manpower agency to the state government.
Excise Superintendent Sanjit Kumar Deo said, “We took utmost care and caution of those shops located or situated across the Bihar border, which is too long and porous. Here, the transition was under great monitoring and surveillance by us.”
Revenue Target for Seven Months
On minimum guaranteed revenue worth 112 crores, Deo said, “This is in fact for just 7 months beginning September 2025 till the end of the financial year 2025-26 on March 31st 2026.”
“We are committed and determined to achieve the target of the minimum guaranteed revenue worth 112 crores during these 7 months beginning September 2025,” added the Excise Superintendent here in Daltonganj.
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Focus on Fair Trade and Pricing
Secretary of Excise and Prohibition Amitabh Kaushal said, “The department has asked the Excise Superintendents across the state to ensure that it’s not the number of retail outlets that will be counted but a smooth and fair transaction that matters most. There is no point in having retail liquor shops in a line, adding to the numbers. The numbers can be coalesced.”
Excise Secretary, expressing hope, said, “We believe there will be a cap on any overpricing now. The retailers will surely try not to indulge in the malpractice of overpricing. Any overpricing will be dealt with very strictly by the officers.”
On being told that many people right now are too eager to bag retailer ship through the due process of lottery, to which Kaushal said, “We are also getting feedback like this that people are vying with each other to bag retail rights for beverage shops in the state.”
