Andhra Pradesh to study Haryana policy to curb ‘belt shops’
Amaravati, Dec 22 : Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu on Monday directed the Excise Department to study the sub-lease system of Haryana to curb the menace of ‘belt shops’ or unauthorised liquor outlets in the state.
At a review meeting of the department, the Chief Minister directed officials to take strict action against ‘belt shops’ and study the policy of Haryana to tackle the problem.
Officials informed the Chief Minister that the problem of ‘belt shops’ exists because of the lack of shops in rural and remote areas.
As part of environmental protection efforts, the department is considering a Deposit Return Scheme (DRS) where customers would receive cash back for returning empty liquor bottles.
Chief Minister Naidu instructed officials to ensure that the state's liquor policy is not viewed as a business, but rather aimed at achieving healthy growth. The Chief Minister clarified that policies should not solely focus on revenue, and that liquor should be treated like any other product.
He suggested further deliberation on the current system of shop allocation through lottery, application fees, liquor identification numbers, and increasing retailer margins
The Chief Minister directed officials to examine the possibility of exempting bars from ARET (Additional Retail Excise Tax).
The implementation of the new excise policy and its impact were discussed comprehensively during the review.
The officials informed the Chief Minister that the excise revenue from October 2024 to October 2025 was Rs 7,041 crore against the target of Rs 8,000 crore.
They revealed that from April 1 to December 17, there was a 4.52 per cent increase in liquor sales, with Indian Made Foreign Liquor (IMFL) sales increasing by 19.08 per cent and beer sales by 94.93 per cent. Officials stated that they estimate an income of Rs. 8,422 crore from December 18 to March 2026. A three per cent increase in excise revenue is expected during the current financial year.
The officials said that Andhra Pradesh has shown the highest growth in IMFL and beer sales in South India due to the introduction of international brands and the making of quality liquor available at affordable prices. However, they mentioned that per capita liquor consumption is lower in Andhra Pradesh than in Telangana. While per capita consumption in Telangana is 4.74 litres, it is 2.77 litres in Andhra Pradesh.
The Chief Minister directed that a unique LIN (Liquor Identification Number) be introduced for every liquor bottle in the state as quickly as possible to prevent counterfeit liquor and irregularities, and that it should be easily identifiable by the general public.
He said the LIN should include details such as the brand, batch, and line number, along with the date, hours, minutes, and seconds of manufacture.
The Chief Minister stated that the LIN would rectify the shortcomings of the currently used HEAL (Hologram Excise Adhesive Labels) system. He also said that complete transparency in liquor supply would be achieved through geo-tagging, and instructed officials to focus on tracking and rationalising the number of shops.