Liquor lubricates Gurgaon economy

GURGAON: The Millennium City is fast becoming a guzzlers' paradise where 1.82 crore litres of alcohol was consumed every month last year. Cashing in on this trend, this year the excise department jacked up the licence fee for liquor vends in auction and notched up Rs 329 crore.
The reason for the sharp increase in the licence fee is the growing liquor consumption pattern in the city.Last year, the city recorded 1,82,93,878 litres of alcohol consumption and this figure is expected to swell by 7.8 % during 2012-13. The high liquor consumption is spiralling because of two factors: (a) easy availability, the city has 308 vends and (b) large number of high-salaried young workforce of MNCs and corporates.
The excise department target of revenue collection is Rs 1,800 crore from the whole of Haryana. Industry insiders claimed that the annual turnover of liquor business in Gurgaon runs into hundreds of crore rupees.Liquor trade insiders also admit that Gurgaon is far ahead of other districts in the licence fee collection and excise duty targets for liquor vends.In Gurgaon, the liquor industry including wholesalers and retailers has over 3,000 people.
The close look at the pattern of the licence fee hike reveals that there is a distinct upward trend in collections. In 2009, auction of 292 liquor vends fetched Rs 220 crore.The year 2009-11 witnessed the first big swing in licence fee collection and it grew by 20%. To make most of the market conditions the excise department added nine more vends in Gurgaon during this year.
Records accessed by TOI show that the excise department collected Rs 213 crore in year 2009-10 and in the next year the collection went up to Rs 256 crore. The following year the licence fee went up by 24 % more and this year it continued the northward movement and over Rs 329 crore was earned by the excise department.
In Gurgaon it is not just the licence fee but also the overall revenue earning of the excise department has been growing at the rate of 5%.Industry experts said that the consumption and sale of liquor were going up but the profit margins were thinning because of the high licence fee and excise duty. To curb bootlegging, the excise department has made it mandatory for all the liquor bottles to have 3D holograms with effect from April 1. The step will ensure that the customers get value for their money.