With Saturday being the last date for receiving applications for liquor vends across the state, the response from bidders has been lukewarm so far but officials said they expect a last-day rush to the counters.
Excise officials gave a variety of explanations for the low turnout of applicants so far, from the astrological to the financial. After the reception of applications ends on Saturday, scrutiny will begin on June 28.
In Krishna district, 600 applications were filed for liquor shops by Friday.
Of the 335 shops allotted to the district, the government will run 33 outlets. Prohibition and Excise Krishna District Deputy Commissioner S.V.V.N. Babji Rao said the response was good and applications were received for more than 150 shops of the 302 shops available to private traders in the district.
Excise officials arranged 20 counters and many traders were seen standing in queues to submit applications till Friday night.
More applications will be filed on the last day on Saturday.
In Guntur district, which once hosted a liquor vend that bid the highest amount in the undivided state, the Excise and Prohibition Department received only 50 applications for the 342 notified liquor outlets in its three excise districts —Guntur, Tenali and Narsaraopet — of which 35 will be run by the government itself.
The TDP government has reverted back to the old lottery system, switching from the auction system brought in by the previous Congress government in 2005.
Policy draws flak
The government expects the lottery system will pre-empt cartel formation by liquor traders. Despite the lottery mode, the government expects to rake in significant revenue.
The new liquor policy has drawn flak from several quarters, especially in the temple city of Tirupati, where activists termed it as an excuse to earn more money at the cost of people's health.
In Srikakulam district, the response from applicants was better, with over 1100 applications expected for the 232 vends on the block. There were long queues at the Srikakulam Zilla Parishad office where the Excise and Prohibition Department is receiving offers.
Notification of the process had been delayed in Srikakulam due to confusion over the location of the vends. There is a nonrefundable deposit of Rs 40000 for urban areas in the district and Rs 30000 for rural areas.
Poll code
In Prakasam district, where there is an MLC election code of conduct in vogue, the notification was not issued. Excise officials said, ''We are awaiting clearance from the Election Commission to go ahead with issuance of notification.”
