Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu during the State Legislative Assembly session, in Amaravati, Monday, July 22, 2024.
Credit: PTI Photo
Hyderabad: The Andhra Pradesh government will soon order a Crime Investigation Department (CID) probe into the large-scale alleged irregularities in the Excise Department during the YSRCP rule.
Releasing a white paper on the floor of the Assembly on the excise policy adopted by the previous government, the Chief Minister, N Chandrababu Naidu, announced here on Wednesday that the support of the Enforcement Directorate (ED) too will be sought as liquor was sold accepting the payments only in cash but not without any online payments.
The Chief Minister said that the state had suffered a loss of Rs 18,860.51 crore with the change in liquor policy after the YSRCP came to power in 2019.
Action will certainly be taken for causing such a huge loss to the exchequer, Naidu said, adding that the details will be sought from the health department on how many people suffered from serious health problems due to consumption of spurious liquor.
Expressing serious concern that the economic condition of the state is very alarming, the Chief Minister stated that a detailed study is yet to be conducted on this.
"We have to increase the state's revenue. This white paper is being released only to explain to the people what exactly had happened to the state in the past five years, the loss that the state had suffered and what kind of serious damage caused the state," he explained.
While papers have already been released on Polavaram, Amaravati, energy and how the natural resources were looted, the Chief Minister said and added that this effort to release the white papers is only that the state government should be answerable to the people.
Pointing out that the party came to power by making a promise to impose prohibition on the state and also bring down the sale of liquor besides confining the liquor supply to only five-star hotels, Naidu said that after assuming power 4,380 shops that were existing at that time were brought down to only to 2,934 as just an eye-wash.
Immediately and within one year the number was increased to 3,392. While continuing the number of bars which were existing in 2019, he said, adding that the fact is that the excise police was totally amended in the name of prohibition.
The percentage of consumers of liquor increased to 6.23pc which was 5.55 between 2019 and 2020, he said. The consumption has increased drastically, the Chief Minister explained.
The Special Enforcement Bureau (SEB) system was brought in through GO number 41 only to check illegal transport of liquor, drugs and ganja but the percentage of ganja smuggling went up by 27pc, while the non-duty paid liquor percentage increased to 66pc and the number of arrests too went up to a whopping 161 per cent, he said.
The popular brands of beers too have been brought down completely while the sale of local brands, which were never found anywhere in the country, have been increased.
Though even petty traders are accepting online payments these days, the previous government had adopted a policy that there is no online payments with regard to liquor purchase. In fact, those who were demanding bills for their payments were even taken into custody, he pointed out.
As per the statistics of the National Crime Records Bureau those who fell victim to liquor consumption has gone up by 100 per cent compared to 2018, the Chief Minister said and added that the mental and sexual harassment cases had increased by 76.40 per cent.
Over 52 per cent of persons suffered from lung failure and the percentage of persons of kidney failure too has gone up by 54 per cent, he explained.
In the name of liquor, loans were raised for a period of 10 to 25 years, Naidu said and felt that this is a big defrauding of the state in the country's history.
Making it clear that an operation cleansing will soon be taken up in the Excise Department, he said that keeping in view the health condition of the people all the cheap brands of liquor will be banned.
Expressing concern that ganja was sold everywhere in the state at will, the Chief Minister said that the government office buildings are being set on fire, apprehending that their illegal activities in the past five years will get exposed. The dues which are to be cleared have gone into the pockets of the then ruling party leaders, Naidu noted.