Jammu wine traders not to open shops till Govt notifies MRP

Jammu wine traders addressing a press conference on Sunday. -Excelsior/Rakesh
Jammu wine traders addressing a press conference on Sunday. -Excelsior/Rakesh

Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Apr 11: Jammu Wine Traders Association today announced that they would not open the shops till the Excise Department notifies Maximum Retail Price (MRP) under New Excise Policy.
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Talking to media persons, here today, Chairman of Jammu Wine Traders Association (JWTA), Jagdish Singh Jasrotia accused the Government of forcing them to close their shops by not notifying the MRP even after 11 days since implementation of the New Excise Policy.
“In absence of MRP, shopkeepers are not in a position to sell the available stock and in the prevailing situation, we are left with no option other than to keep our shops closed till MRP is notified,” he explained.
Alleging a conspiracy to intentionally harass the wine traders, JWTA President Charanjeet Singh said that by not notifying MRP under New Excise Policy, the Government was not only causing loss to the wine traders but also losing Excise revenue.
“Because of the prevailing situation, the Government is losing revenue of around 100 crore rupees while unscrupulous elements are resorting to black marketing, which is causing loss to consumers,” he added.
Once against strongly opposing the New Excise Policy, Jammu Wine Traders Association demanded continuation of the old policy and appealed Lt Governor, J&K, Manoj Sinha to listen to their grievances.
The New Excise Policy envisages allotment of liquor shops to the residents of the Union Territory through e-auction. The vends shall be allotted for a period of one year and the total number of shops to be allotted would be the same as existing at present. Only a single outlet will be allotted to one person.