Asifabad

Liquor traders are showing little interest in bidding for liquor shop tenders this time. Compared to previous years, only half the usual number of tenders seem likely to be submitted. Last month, the government issued a notification for managing liquor shops for the 2025–2027 period. Even after 20 days since the notification was released, only 212 tenders have been filed across the district, causing concern among the Excise officials.

In Kumaram Bhim district, there are 32 liquor shops, but traders are showing interest in bidding for only a few of them.

In the Asifabad excise division, areas like Wankidi, Tiryani, Goyagaon, and in the Kagaznagar division, places like Gudem, Dahagam, Koutala, and Easgaon are seeing competition among traders to secure shops.

However, for the remaining shops, applications are falling short of expectations. As a result, Excise officials themselves are calling traders and urging them to submit tenders.

There are several reasons for the lack of enthusiasm this time.

Due to government policies, liquor traders’ income has been declining year after year, while expenses have skyrocketed.

In the 2023–2025 liquor notification, the application fee was Rs 2 lakh, but this time the government has increased it to Rs 3 lakh—adding an extra 1 lakh burden per tender. Additionally, the operational costs of running liquor shops have been doubling annually.

Increasing harassment from officials of various departments has become a curse for liquor traders. In many places, traders are forced to pay bribes along with monthly liquor bottle quotas.

Above all, liquor policies designed solely to maximize government revenue are causing irreparable losses to traders. With rising costs and falling revenues, many traders have gone bankrupt.

In this context, real estate businessmen and political leaders are showing greater interest in entering the liquor business, while those who have been in the trade from the beginning are reluctant to bid.

In the 2023–2025 liquor tenders, 1,026 applications were received, but this time, even half that number seems doubtful.

Due to these developments, some of those who win tenders are resorting to unethical practices to avoid losses.

Some are selling adulterated liquor, while others are charging exorbitant prices.