Chief minister Nitish Kumar held a closed-door meeting with excise officials on Thursday and discussed the draft of a new Bihar Excise Act, 2016, which will replace the Bihar Excise (Amendment) Act, 2016, passed by the state legislature this year in March.

Chief secretary Anjani Kumar Singh told The Telegraph that the entire exercise was held with regard to formulation of a new excise act, which will be tabled in the Legislative Assembly in the upcoming monsoon session. It will replace the existing Bihar Excise (Amendment) Act, 2016."

Nitish saw a presentation on the draft of the new act, put questions to officials and provided suggestions on its various aspects. Different departments, including legal and health, would now be consulted over the draft.

Excise sources said the new act would also attempt to plug the gaps in the existing act owing to which people arrested on the charges of violating prohibition in the state are able to secure bail from the courts.

It will also give power to excise assistant sub-inspectors to investigate cases and lodge FIRs at police stations. So far, officers of the rank of excise inspectors and above are mandated to discharge this function and this step would help the department tide over shortage of employees.