New Delhi, March 18 The Delhi government has extended the existing excise regime for a year, citing the ongoing work on a new liquor policy, officials said on Wednesday.
The city government's excise department, in an order on Tuesday, extended the renewal and granting of new retail liquor licenses for 2026-27 under the same terms and conditions as the existing policy.
"The Competent Authority has approved the renewal and granting of L-6, L-6FG, L-6FE, L-8, L-10, L-14, L-23, L-23F, and L-30 licenses for the licensing year 2026-2027, under the same terms and conditions as those of the 2025-26 excise year (which continued from 2022-23, 2023-24, and 2024-25)," the order stated.
The relevant departments of the excise department will issue separate circulars for various retail licenses related to the sale of Indian Manufactured Foreign Liquor (IMFL), foreign liquor, beer, and country liquor, the officials said.
Last month, the excise department extended the licenses for hotels, clubs, and restaurants until March 2027, under the terms and conditions of the existing policy.
In June last year, the Delhi government extended the duty-based excise policy, which had been in effect since the licensing year 2022-23, for the 2025-26 fiscal year.
Currently, there are approximately 725 retail liquor vends operated by four government agencies – the Delhi Tourism and Transportation Development Corporation (DTTDC), the Delhi State Civil Supplies Corporation (DSCSC), the Delhi State Industrial and Infrastructure Development Corporation (DSIIDC), and the Delhi Consumers' Cooperative Wholesale Stores (DCCWS).
The existing policy has been in place since 2023-24, when a reformative policy allowing private players in retail liquor sale was scrapped by the then Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government in July 2022 amid allegations of irregularities.
Chief Minister Rekha Gupta instructed officials last year to prepare a draft proposal for the new excise policy. The government aims to come up with a new policy that ensures the supply of quality liquor with transparency, the officials said.
A group of ministers formed to frame the new excise policy has submitted its recommendations to the government, which is yet to come up with a draft of the policy, they added.