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Maharashtra

Maharashtra Government Form Committee To Explore Revenue Through Liquor, Cigarette Sales Amid Fund Issues

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State governments, when drowning in debt, have no option but to tweak the excise policy on sin goods like cigarettes and liguor. Maharashtra may be no exception to the norm.

With its income sources already stretched thin, the cash-strapped Mahayuti government has decided to pop open a bottle of opportunity—appointing a five-member committee to explore liquor production and sales as a new revenue stream.

The committee, chaired by the additional secretary for the housing department, Appoints Committee to Study Liquor Policies for Revenue e Generation brings together a medley of bureaucrats: the additional chief secretaries from finance and state excise, the commissioner of state GST, and the member secretary, the state excise commissioner.

Together, they’ll be tasked with reviewing policies on liquor production, sales licenses, excise duties, and, crucially, revenue-maximizing practices adopted by other states, Expect a menu of recommendations on how to spice up state coffers. The committee’s. main course? A proposal already served up by the state excise commissioner, aimed at increasing annual income through liquor production and sales.

The plan? Crack down on illegal liquor sales and serve up more licenses for retail outlets. If this proposal is uncorked, it could boost the state’s revenue while also tidying up the department’ existing operations. ‘Why the sudden thirst for extra revenue, you ask? Blame the evergrowing list of populist promises made ahead of the state elections, which now need to be fulfilled. Take the Ladki Bahin scheme, for example—it demands a whopping Rs 46,000 crore annually.

Add to that loan waivers for farmers and covering electricity bills for agriculture pump sets, and you’ve got a recipe for fiscal trouble. To top it off, the state needs an extra Rs 600 crore to hike the Ladki Bahin disbursement from Rs 1,500 to Rs 2,100. Then there’s the debt. With loans soon expected to touch Rs 8 lakh crore, the state needs a sugar rush of revenue to keep things running smoothly. Aside from GST, Maharashtra relies heavily on VAT from petrol and diesel, stamp duties, vehicle taxes, and—of course—excise revenues. And so, the state is eyeing liquor sales as a cash cow.

But here’s the rub: the state’s current policy freezes the number of retail liquor licenses, a decision made back in 1974. With Maharashtra’s population growing and new urban areas cropping up, the demand for wine shops and country liquor outlets is higher than ever. The state excise department believes it’s high time to revisit this policy. Currently, there are 1,720 licenses for Indian Made Foreign Liquor (IMFL) and 4,346 for country liquor, not including those granted to restaurants with permit rooms. As population booms and urbanization spreads, the excise department is suggesting that the state loosen its grip on liquor licenses and let more outlets sprout up, bringing in fresh revenue while reducing the black market’s grip.

So, is the state taking the path of least resistance, or is it simply opening a new bottle of opportunity? Only time (and the committee’s recommendations) will tell—but it seems like Maharashtra is preparing to raise a glass to new ways of keeping the state’s finances in the black.

Maharashtra

Mahayoti government’s deception with Ladli sisters, reduction in Ladli sisters’ installments is a betrayal: Abu Asim Azmi

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Mumbai: Maharashtra Samajwadi Party leader Abu Asim Azmi has termed the reduction in the installment of Ladli sisters as a fraud. He said that the way cash is illegally distributed for votes on election night, one thousand and two thousand rupees are distributed in the areas for votes per person, in the same way, women were lured under the Ladli sister scheme before the elections. This is a kind of deception of the Mahayoti government and now that the meaning has been revealed, they do not recognize it. He said that will the Mahayoti government also return the votes of these Ladli sisters that these sisters had given to them in the elections? He said that due to the Ladli sister scheme, the government treasury was burdened. The salaries of government employees, doctors and other staff have also been paid late, in such a situation, the government has deceived the Ladli sisters. After the elections, an increase in the installment was announced and a promise was made to give Rs 2100, but now it has been reduced from Rs 1500 to Rs 500. The government had included more than two crore women in the Ladli Behan scheme, but now they are being disqualified using excuses and tricks. This is a betrayal of the sisters who have voted.

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Maharashtra

Action should be taken in the case of misuse of National Herald land – Anil Galgali demands CM Devendra Fadnavis

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Mumbai, Mumbai – The government land given to Associated Journals Limited (AJL) in Survey No. 341 in Bandra (East) area in 1983 for the office of “National Herald”, Nehru Library and Research Centre has been misused, the investigation report of the Gautam Chatterjee Committee has revealed. In this backdrop, RTI activist Anil Galgali has written a letter to Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis demanding immediate action.
The investigation report says that 83 thousand square feet of construction has been done on the land, including 11 thousand square feet of basement and additional use of 9 thousand square feet of upper floor, which is in violation of the rules. As per the rules, only 15 percent commercial use was allowed, but this has also been violated. In addition, additional land allocated for the hostel was also given to the institution ignoring the rules.
In 2001, under a controversial order of the Revenue Department, the leased land was converted into direct ownership and interest of ₹ 2.78 crore was waived, which the committee has declared against the rules and recommended its review.
Anil Galgali has made the following demands to the Chief Minister through a letter. Legal action should be initiated to take back the said land to the government.
The waived interest amount and additional penalty should be recovered. A hostel for backward class students should be started on one floor of the building. Instructions should be given to start a library and research centre on the remaining land. Gautam Chatterjee’s investigation report should be made public.
Anil Galgali said, “It is very important to ensure fair justice in this matter and use the government land in the public interest.”

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Maharashtra

Mumbai bomb threat: One arrested

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Mumbai: Mumbai Police claims to have arrested a drunkard who threatened to blow up Mumbai with a bomb. Mumbai Police received a call at 4:30 am in which a bomb blast was threatened in Mumbai. After that, Mumbai Police started investigating it and then claimed to have arrested a drunkard, Suraj Jadhav, 37, from Borivali area. He had made threatening phone calls before. He had threatened to blow up Borivali, BKC, Vakola and he also has three cases of such fake calls registered against him. Azad Maidan police has taken action in this threatening call case.
Mumbai Police has said that this accused has made threatening phone calls several times. Since he made this phone call to the Mumbai Police Control Room, Azad Maidan Police has started an investigation in this regard and a case has been registered against him. Threatening phone calls have become a headache for Mumbai. The police takes such phone calls very seriously because it cannot be neglected. Mumbai Police Commissioner Vivek Pansalkar has also issued instructions for necessary action regarding the threatening call, due to which the police is taking serious action in this matter.

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