Excise mop-up seen at Rs 2,500 cr in Feb

The state excise department sees a record revenue collection of Rs 2,500 crore in February. The spurt in the collection will be due to the sustained drive against illicit liquor manufacturers in Maharashtra.

A senior government official said that normally December is the top grossing month. But this year February, the shortest month of the year, will witness excise collections growing by leaps and bounds.

The drive against illicit liquor makers was launched after the Mumbai hooch tragedy in January, 2005, that killed over 100 people. The tragedy shook the state administration and soon the excise department was set in pursuit of the illicit liquor manufacturers throughout the state.

"While December, 2004, yielded Rs 1,934 crore, compared with Rs 1,846 crore yielded in December, 2003, this February will break all records of revenue collections," the official said.

The state saw saw Rs 1,700 crore of excise collection in November 2004, compared with Rs 1,549 crore in November, 2003. Collection in January 2004 stood at Rs 1,635 crore. As per preliminary reports, so far the collection in February has crossed the Rs 1,898 crore mark recorded in January.