Visakhapatnam District Alone Polished Off Liquor Worth Rs 1,940 Crore in 2025
On an average, liquor worth `6 crore is sold daily in the district, with 45 per cent of transactions conducted digitally
Visakhapatnam: Visakhapatnam district recorded liquor sales worth `1,940.37 crore as of December 30, 2025. Sales have been higher in 2025 with 23.32 lakh cases of liquor and 17.23 lakh cases of beer sold, against 20.91 lakh liquor cases and 11.90 lakh beer cases in 2024.
Prohibition and Excise superintendent R. Prasad explained that the department oversees private liquor shops, bars, clubs, star hotels, premium stores, APTDC bars, microbreweries, and defence canteens, while also checking illicit liquor and drug activities. The district currently has 159 liquor shops, 75 bars, 16-star hotels, 5 APTDC bars, 7 clubs, 2 microbreweries, 2 premium stores, and 19 defence canteens. Through these, `204 crore have been collected in license fees in 2025, marking a 20 per cent increase from `169 crore in 2024.
Additional revenues included `2.43 lakh from seized vehicles, `2.15 lakh from towed vehicle violations and `30.19 lakh from Lok Adalat settlements. Permit rooms contributed `8.77 crore, while one-day event permits added `14.82 lakh.
Enforcement actions in 2025 led to 442 unauthorised liquor sales cases, with 883.76 litres of IML and 65.65 litres of beer seized, along with three vehicles, involving 443 arrests. In 67 non-duty-paid liquor cases, 680 litres of IML, 24.3 litres of beer, and six vehicles had been seized, with 69 persons arrested. Eight ganja cases resulted in 15 arrests and seizure of 67.23 kg of the narcotic. Unauthorised liquor sales fell by 63 per cent compared to 2024, attributed to field-level monitoring.
Prasad said daily monitoring is conducted through the “Excise Eye” app, while the government has introduced the “A.P. Excise Suraksha” app to detect counterfeit liquor. On an average, liquor worth `6 crore is sold daily in the district, with 45 per cent of transactions conducted digitally.
For New Year's Eve celebrations, liquor shops will operate until midnight, while bars, hotels, and event venues may remain open until 1 am. 14 applications for one-day event permits have been received. Coordination between the excise and police departments is underway to ensure safety.
Superintendent Prasad confirmed that copies of the permits will be shared with the police to prevent untoward incidents, as enforcement teams continue efforts to curb illegal liquor and drug activities, apart from raising public awareness.
