Army Canteen stores record profit

The Canteen Stores Department which operates retail stores for the armed forces has declared profit in the quarterly figure reveal for FY17-18. As informed, the company collected tax refunds from a few states and imposed penalties on companies that flouted fair pricing norms, which included matching and promotional offers given to other retailers.

CSD, or Army Canteen, which, incidentally, is a not-for-profit organisation, earned Rs 1,253 crore during the year to March, significantly higher than other retailers in the country. A year ago, it had earned a net profit of Rs 280 crore on sales of Rs 17,000 crore.

CSD’s retail outlets sell 5,300 products ranging from biscuits and beer to shampoos and cars to 12 million consumers — personnel of the army, navy and air force, ex servicemen and their families.