Chandigarh admn toasts to success with sale of 96 of 97 liquor vends in one go

Unlike the last two years, when the UT excise and taxation department struggled with unsold vends and missed revenue targets, this year, it has been third-time lucky.

At an auction held on Friday, the department successfully sold 96 out of the 97 liquor vends on offer, over a week before the 2025-26 Excise Policy kicks in on April 1.

This marked a much-needed recovery for the department, which generated ₹606 crore in revenue—36% above the ₹439 crore reserve price—setting it on a strong path to meet its revised target of ₹800 crore for the year.

Additionally, it raked in ₹4.56 crore in participation fees, with 228 liquor contractors bidding for the 96 vends sold.

The liquor vend in Palsora fetched the highest bid of ₹14 crore, well above its reserve price of ₹10.22 crore. Only one liquor vend, located in Sector 20, found no taker.

Notably, in 2024-25, 12 vends had remained unsold, leading to a shortfall of ₹200 crore against the ₹1,000-crore revenue target, with only ₹800 crore generated. The previous year, the department faced even greater challenges, falling far short of its ₹830 crore target, collecting only ₹600 crore.

This year, the department has set a more conservative target of ₹800 crore, down from the previous year’s goal.

Amendments in policy lead to success

The surge in participation and success of the auction follows several key changes in the excise policy. HPS Brar, collector (Excise), credited amendments such as allowing bars to procure liquor from retail vends and inter-vend stock transfer within the same entity, and rationalisation of liquor quotas.

He further added that this time, Punjab opted for an auction instead of a draw of lots, driving many contractors to participate in Chandigarh’s auction. Additionally, the participation fee in Punjab’s auction was ₹5 lakh, while in Chandigarh, it was ₹3.50 lakh, making it a more attractive option for bidders.

Local contractors cry foul

Meanwhile, local liquor vend contractors alleged that the auction was successful as most of the vends were awarded to a firm from Madhya Pradesh. They claimed that the department violated the Excise Policy by allowing one firm to acquire around 20 vends, despite the policy limiting it to 10 vends per firm.

Darshan Singh Kler, president of the Wine Contractors’ Association, alleged, “One firm from Madhya Pradesh acquired around 20 vends under different names. We demand a CBI inquiry into this and call for cancellation of the auction.”

However, HPS Brar refuted these claims, asserting that the new Excise Policy was designed to increase transparency and state revenue through technology-driven reforms.

“There is no foul play. The Excise Policy specifically restricts allotment to a single person, entity, company or firm to a maximum of 10 licensing units. The objective is to curb cartelisation and monopolies, ensuring a level playing field while also boosting the state’s revenue,” he said.