Lucknow: Uttar Pradesh’s liquor industry is witnessing rapid growth, with 137 companies committing to invest a whopping ₹39,700 crore in the state’s excise sector. Of these, 46 projects are either completed or nearing completion, according to UP Excise Minister Nitin Agarwal.
These already active projects have brought in around ₹10,185 crore in investments. The minister emphasized that the excise department has become a major contributor to UP’s economic growth and is playing a key role in achieving the state’s target of becoming a $1 trillion economy, as envisioned by Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath.
Ethanol & Tech Push
UP has also emerged as a leading ethanol producer in India and is integrating technology to modernize and streamline the liquor trade. Impressively, in the last three years, the state has reported zero deaths due to illegal or spurious liquor—an important achievement for the department.
Record Revenue Collection
The excise department has set a new benchmark by collecting ₹52,297 crore in revenue (provisional) between April 1, 2024, and March 31, 2025. This marks a 15% increase over the previous year’s revenue of ₹45,570 crore.
To further boost revenue, the government has also introduced composite liquor shops for the first time from the 2025–26 financial year, allowing multiple types of liquor to be sold from a single outlet.
Liquor Shops Almost Fully Allotted
Out of 27,308 liquor shops available across the state, only 105 remain unallotted—the rest have already been allocated to entrepreneurs and businessmen. According to Excise Commissioner Adarsh Singh, the department earned ₹2,319 crore just from processing fees paid by applicants for these shops.
Strong Production Capacity
At present, 105 production units are operational in the state, manufacturing ethanol, country liquor, foreign liquor, industrial alcohol, brew, and other beverages. More such units are expected to be set up soon.
Crackdown on Illegal Trade
In a robust enforcement drive during 2024–25, the department arrested 24,049 individuals for violating liquor laws. Among them, 5,557 were jailed, and 203 vehicles used for smuggling liquor were seized.
