Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu on Monday directed the Excise Department to take strong action against strip shops and asked officials to study the sub-lease system being used in Haryana to curb the practice. He also ordered other reforms to the lottery system for the allocation of liquor stores, the application fee structure, the liquor identification system and other related procedures.
Reviewing the functioning of the department at the secretariat, Mr. Naidu asked the officials to look into the proposal to exempt bars from additional retail excise duty and to prioritize digital payments wherever possible.
Officials informed the chief minister that the department earned ₹7,041 crore against a target of ₹8,000 crore during the financial year 2024-25. Sales of spirits grew by 4.52% between April 1 and December 17, 2025 in fiscal year 2025-2026. Digital payments saw an average growth of 34.9%, with some districts reporting as much as 47%.
To limit the sale of counterfeit liquor, each bottle was assigned a unique identification number. India’s foreign liquor sales grew by 19.08%, while beer sales almost doubled, growing by 95%.
Mr. Naidu called for reliable implementation of the hologram excise sticker system, saying it would help check counterfeiting and tax evasion, thereby safeguarding excise revenue.
Ministers Kollu Ravindra and Kondapalli Srinivas, Principal Secretary (Finance) Peeyush Kumar and Directors Chamakuri Sridhar (Prohibition and Excise) and Rahul Dev Sarma (Excise Enforcement) were among those present.
Published – 22 Dec 2025 19:40 IST
