2 weeks Ago
Chandigarh is in the grip of a severe liquor shortage, with shelves running dry at vends, customers’ frustration mounting and prices of any liquor available rising by the day. It all started after the UT excise and taxation department on April 9 sealed 48 of the 96 vends allotted for financial year 2025-26 after the successful bidders failed to submit bank guarantees worth ₹ 40 crore. Ever since, just 47 vends remain operational, most struggling to meet customer demand.
But the crisis runs deeper—with an unprecedented cocktail of excise policy uncertainty, pending payments, technical glitches and supply chain delays leaving even the operational vends dry. Liquor companies have stalled supplies due to unpaid dues, contractors are also not sourcing stock amid court proceedings around the excise policy and the excise department’s sluggish online system has created an application bottleneck. Beer is the worst hit, with most vends running out of stock.
Even major Indian Made Foreign Liquor (IMFL) and country-made liquor brands are not available. While Godfather is the only beer brand currently available, more popular labels like Kingfisher, Corona and Budweiser remain off the shelves. Mid-range IMFL brands like Black Dog, Red Label, Black Label, Teachers and Jameson are also unavailable—affecting the city’s most in-demand liquor segment.
Prices spike, Bacchus lovers head to Mohali, Panchkula With stocks depleting, prices of available liquor have also surged. Godfather, the only beer available, normally priced at ₹ 130, is now being sold for up to ₹ 200. Harried customers, after hunting for liquor locally, are travelling to Mohali and Panchkula, where also the liquor vends are making hay by spiking prices amid noticeably increased demand.
Website woes, payment delays stall supply Even the operational vends aren’t getting fresh stock as the excise department’s website, used by dealers and vend owners to submit their supply requests, has been running slowly for days. As per the procedure to get stock, first an order is placed through the department’s website, which is then approved by the excise inspector. The same is forwarded to the excise and taxation officer (ETO) and subsequently sent to the company supplying the liquor.
The company then generates the customer code and transit pass, which is again approved by the excise inspector, after which the supply is despatched. But liquor companies have stopped generating customer codes, citing pending payments from contractors, compounding the issue. A senior official of the UT excise department said there were “some issues” that were being addressed and the supply was expected to improve soon.
On revenue loss for the excise department, he said, “There is no fixed quota for IMFL and country made liquor, so there will be no loss. There will be a small shortfall in terms of revenue from beer, which has a fixed quota.” Policy in court leaves contractors in a bind Adding to the confusion is the ongoing legal battle over the UT excise policy.
With the matter pending in the Punjab and Haryana high court and the next hearing scheduled for April 24, many contractors have chosen to wait before placing new orders. The uncertainty has led to hesitation, say contractors. Maneet Choujar, who owns eight liquor vends, said they had already written to the department about the issue.
“Primarily, companies aren’t generating customer codes, and then, the website isn’t working properly as well. We’re hoping supply will be restored soon,” he said. Chandigarh Wine Contractors’ Association president Darshan Singh Kler said this was the first time in years that they were facing a shortage in April.
“The companies are not supplying liquor due to unresolved payment issues with contractors. Also, many contractors are waiting for the court’s decision on the policy before placing new orders to avoid loss,” he added. Another vend owner, not wishing to be named, said a legal notice had been sent to the excise department for failing to resolve the portal issues.
“The mid-range IMFL segment, costing ₹ 500 ₹ 1,000, is the most consumed in the city. But the supply has dried up. Yet the department is not fixing the approval delays,” he said.
HC allows three firms to participate in fresh auction Meanwhile, the Punjab and Haryana high court on Thursday allowed three firms to participate in the fresh auction being held for allotment of cancelled vends. The three firms/ individuals had challenged UT’s decision to cancel allotments for their failure to deposit requisite bank guarantee with the administration in stipulated time. The firms were also barred from participating in future auctions under the excise policy.
One of the petitioner had bagged nine vends in the original auction. The case will now be taken up on April 21, when UT is also set to open bids of the fresh auction. The court did not stay the cancellation order.
But allowed them to participate in April 21 auction with the caveat that allotments, if any made to them in the auction, would be subject to outcome of petition pending in high court..
