Chandigarh: A substantial number of liquor retail groups in Punjab continue to remain without bidders even after multiple rounds of e-tendering, reflecting a cautious response from traders to the excise policy for 2026–27 and leaving several vends yet to be operationalised.Under the policy, the govt allowed existing liquor traders to renew licences. Data shows out of 207 groups across the state, comprising 6,378 vends, 147 groups were renewed. Despite subsequent rounds of e-tendering, 52 groups, having around 1,200 retail vends, are yet to be allotted.Groups that were not renewed are being allotted through e-tendering, following the same procedure as 2025–26. The reserve price for these groups has been fixed by adding a 6.5% increase over the previous year’s discovered licence fee.The department of excise has placed these unallocated groups for bidding across Patiala, Jalandhar and Ferozepur zones. The highest concentration of such vends is in Zira with 85, followed by Lehra (74), Ferozepur Cantonment (68), Baghapurana (60), Nihal Khera (53), Begowal (47) and Shalimar Bagh (46). Balachaur City has 32 vends. Among other key locations, Kurali, New Chandigarh, Hazipur and Dasuya (Hoshiarpur) have 25 vends each, while Bharatgarh has 24, Amritsar Railway Station 23, Amritsar City Centre 22, and Khanna-2 has 21 vends.The policy provides flexibility to address such situations. The deputy commissioner (excise)-cum-collectors of the zone concerned are authorised to modify group composition, including changes in geographical area or revenue limits, to make them more viable. In cases where groups are merged, the newly formed unit is treated as a single group, with the condition that overall excise revenue remains unaffected.Further, if bids are still not forthcoming, the reserve price of a group can be reduced by the financial commissioner (excise), Punjab, based on recommendations of a committee comprising district and range-level excise officials. In the present round, reserve prices have been reduced by 3% and subsequently by another 2% in an effort to improve participation.The policy also stipulates that ordinarily no single entity will be allotted more than five excise groups through e-tender, although this limit may be relaxed or reduced by the financial commissioner, depending on local conditions. The next round of e-tendering is scheduled for March 27.Retail traders said market sentiment remains weak, citing losses during the 2025–26 financial year and concerns over viability. They indicated that reserve prices may need to be reduced further, in some cases by 8% to 12%, to attract bidders. Traders also pointed out that the continuation of the open IMFL quota system, despite demands to shift to a fixed quota model similar to country liquor (PML), has added to their concerns.
