Govt plans to use tech to check alcohol sale

LAHORE: To keep a check on the illegal sale of alcoholic beverages, the Excise Taxation and Narcotic Control Department (ETNCD) has proposed the establishment of an online system to monitor breweries, distilleries and wine shops, The Express Tribune has learnt.

The PC-I of the project, titled Smart Monitoring and Regulation of Distilleries and Breweries, is with the planning and development department for approval. It is being set up at a cost of around Rs60 million and the aim is to monitor every aspect, from production
to sale, of alcoholic beverages.

According to documents available with The Express Tribune, smart monitoring and regulation would minimise the misuse of alcoholic spirits that can cause disabilities and fatalities among the users.

The document stated that for the moment, relevant entities in businesses are granted licences to produce ethanol, and the entire process is done manually. All such forms and licences are granted for sale and purchase of these chemicals and raw materials which are directly controlled by the excise department.



It added that through this current process, they cannot control duplication and forgery of receipts.

There is no backward traceability to the source and since monitoring of all distilleries, breweries and wine shops is manual, it may be resulting in revenue loss.

The project proposes to establish an online application and a real time monitoring system. The online application system would keep track of the entire process, from production to sale, of alcoholic beverages.

Under the new system, smart monitoring centres have been proposed at regional offices and headquarters of the excise department, intended to ensure that nothing bypasses the online application system.

The project also proposes to bring the record of all licences and forms online.

The benefit of the project, according to the document, was to monitor production of distilleries and breweries against raw material received and consumed by them. This would help validate production against supply.

It will also ensure that only the permitted number of units is sold. The online system hopes to reconcile sale/supply with respect to multiple locations/permits/licences and collection of revenue.

It will also help determine shortcomings in the performance of staff, the document added.



Murree Brewery CEO MNA Isphanyar Bhandara appreciated the excise department’s proposal, saying any initiative that curbs the discretionary powers of government officials will improve the enforcement of laws.

“Discretionary powers with inspectors and other officials open the portal for wrongdoing,” he said. “Automating the entire system with software and cameras would also increase the excise department’s revenue.”

Published in The Express Tribune, June 29^th, 2017.