Madhya Pradesh Launches Affordable Pack to Prevent Sale of Spurious Liquor
BHOPAL / In a bid to prevent the sale of spurious liquor in Madhya Pradesh, the Excise Department has launched an affordable 90 ml bottle of country-made spirit. The move is seen to curb the hooch tragedies in which several people have been recently killed in the state.
The state government has provisioned it in the liquor policy for the financial year, 2021-22 to have country liquor in smaller bottles comes after 38 people died drinking illicit liquor in Ujjain and Morena last year.
“The department aims to sell the country-made liquor in 90-milliliter bottles so that it becomes affordable to the poor who may skip costlier 180ml bottles and opt for cheaper and possibly spurious liquor”, Assistant Commissioner, Gwalior (AC) of the department Sandip Sharma told The Sun Today.
“As per the new policy, liquor companies must pack 10 per cent of their production of country-made liquor in 90ml bottles. Country liquor used to come in minimum 180 ml packs, which some of the poor consumers may not have been able to afford and there was the risk of them turning towards cheaper and possibly spurious liquor,” Sharma said.
The Commercial Tax Department has ordered all outlets of the country-made liquor that 10 per cent quantity of the 90-ml pack (Chhutku) must be available at every shop along with 180-ml packs. The department launched the Chhutku packs in September this year.
“The 90 ml bottle is more affordable as it comes at half the price of a quarter of country-made liquor therefore the sale of country-made liquor has increased up to 30 per cent at the authorized outlets,” AC Sharma added.
Sharma also said that after launching the initiative, the possibility of the sale of spurious liquor has declined in the state, and as per received feedback, the consumers seem satisfied.
