Tirupati: Excise minister Kollu Ravindra came down heavily on the previous YSRCP government, accusing it of dismantling state’s excise system under the pretext of prohibition, while in reality promoting harmful liquor brands and centralising control of the liquor trade.

Speaking at a state-level review meeting with excise officials here on Wednesday, Ravindra outlined the new government’s commitment to a transparent and reform-driven excise policy. He emphasised that the current administration aims to restore public health and boost state revenue through a restructured and accountable liquor management system.

“Between 2019 and 2024, the excise framework in the state was completely derailed,” Ravindra said during his interaction with the media. “The previous government came to power with a promise of prohibition, but instead turned the liquor trade into a massive business empire controlled entirely by the state.”

He pointed to the disbanding of enforcement mechanisms and the removal of established liquor brands as major failures that contributed to falling revenues and a rise in serious health issues, including kidney and liver ailments affecting lakhs of citizens.

In contrast, Ravindra said the present coalition government has introduced a new liquor policy based on studies from six other states. The policy focuses on transparency and accountability — ranging from lottery-based shop allocation to mandatory digital payments at retail outlets. According to the minister, nearly 90,000 applications for shop licenses were received, generating over Rs.1,800 crore in revenue.

He noted that over 350 quality liquor brands are now available across the state, and prices have been rationalised to match neighbouring states, helping to reduce illegal cross-border imports. Popular and reliable old brands have also been reintroduced. “We’ve nearly wiped out belt shops and reinstated strong enforcement measures,” he said and recalled the reduction in license fees for three-star hotels as part of a tourism-friendly policy revamp.

Under the new ‘Navodayam 2.0’ mission, Ravindra said the government is working towards making Andhra Pradesh a liquor-responsible and ganja-free state. Measures like online indenting and a ‘Track and Trace’ system have been introduced to ensure full transparency and accountability across the supply chain.

The minister further alleged that massive financial irregularities took place under the YSRCP regime. He claimed that nearly Rs1 lakh crore in liquor transactions occurred through a ‘Cash and Carry’ model, which is now under investigation by the CID. Additionally, he accused the previous administration of mortgaging future liquor revenues to raise loans amounting to Rs 32,000 crore.