The Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government has made a decision to ease the stress on state coffers, decided to levy a green cess on Indian-made foreign liquor (IMFL), beer and country liquor.
There is good news too amidst the bad news on increasing cess, as excise duty on premium brands of imported liquor will be “rationalised” to make them more affordable, a move expected to increase revenue will be sought out to help to generate higher sales.
The government aims to mobilise an additional Rs 1,000 crore in the next financial year, said an official.
He stated, “We may not be able to achieve the target of Rs 17,477 crore for the current year. There may be a shortfall of Rs 800 crore. In such circumstances, it was felt a new strategy was required to mobilise an additional Rs 1,000 crore.”
The official said the green tax would be up to Rs 10 per bottle on all IMFL, beer and country liquor.
It needs to be mentioned here that, On 1 Jan 2020, Devendra Fadnavis government increased the excise duty on IMFL (Indian-made foreign liquor) by 20% to mobilise an additional Rs 150-200 crore per month.
Following the hike, excise duty on IMFL in Maharashtra will be the steepest in the country. It is already the highest for other alcoholic beverages.
