Bhopal: The new excise policy of Madhya Pradesh will be in effect from April 1. The policy will close down liquor shops in the 19 religious cities and villages. Besides, selling liquor without a POS (Point of Sale) machine will attract penalties.
In keeping with this, the government has made the decision to allow liquor shops to open in other locations to compensate for revenue loss from closing liquor shops in these religious areas. Also, this will increase the prices of liquor.
According to the new policy, all liquor transactions should be done on POS machines. The motive behind this move is to promote transparency in sales and minimize tax evasion. This system will not only help the government to know the quantum of liquor sold at each outlet but will also ensure better compliance with taxation laws.
The second major change in the policy pertains to cyber treasury challans being directly deposited into bank accounts through the e-guarantee system. Restaurants and bars will be forced to pay an extra charge if they wish to extend their facilities.
A record 36 per cent rise in the number of liquor shops has been registered over the past 20 years in Madhya Pradesh. The new policy is a bid to regulate and control the sale of liquor even more effectively while also respecting religious sentiments by banning liquor sales from premises recognised as holy, according to the New Package of Liquor Policy 2010.
With these in place, the government hopes to make an alcohol distribution system that is more transparent and regulated. According to him, the introduction of POS machines would aid the state revenue collection flow by tracking sales, reducing unlawful activities and increasing overall revenue collection.
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