The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) unearthed a loss of excise revenue amounting to Rs 75.07 crore due to manipulation of manually maintained sales registers by retail shops of alcoholic beverages in Odisha during the COVID-19 pandemic.

In its report, which was placed in the assembly on Saturday, the CAG said that the Odisha Excise Department in May 2020 imposed the Special COVID Fee (SCF), at the rate of 50 per cent of the maximum retail price, on all foreign made foreign liquor, Indian Made Foreign Liquor (IMFL), beer, wine and ready to drink beverages, sold in the state.

SCF was imposed in view of the expected loss of excise revenue, on account of the two months’ shutdown, as a response to the COVID-19 pandemic.