Jammu Tawi, March 12 -- Despite growing demand for a blanket ban on sale of liquor by political and religious organizations in Jammu and Kashmir, the Omar government is moving forward with plans to expand the liquor trade in the J-K UT by inviting bids for new liquor shops across the Union Territory, including the Kashmir Valley.

The J&K government's Excise Policy for 2025-26, recently released by the Finance Department, outlines the establishment of over 200 new liquor vends across ten districts in Jammu and four districts in Kashmir. The policy, which will be in effect from April 1, 2025, to March 31, 2026, includes plans to grant licenses for 83 new retail outlets via e-auction during the upcoming financial year.

This expansion has ...