Strike over VAT & excise hike total in Nagpur: Bar owners
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Nagpur: Tipplers wanting to settle down for a drink found their favourite joints closed on Monday. Permit room (liquor bar) owners across the state were on strike against the govt's move to impose value-added tax (VAT) on liquor and the latest move to hike excise duty.
Wine shop owners expressed solidarity with fellow traders and kept their outlets closed till 4pm. Sales at the wine shop counters resumed after that as beer shops, clubs, and certain fine dining restaurants that serve liquor continued business as usual.
There are over 1,100 bars in Nagpur district and 470 in the city. Permit Room Owners Guild claimed the strike was total success. A day's closure of mid-level bars will lead to a revenue loss of Rs3 crore in terms of VAT in the district, claimed the association.
In Nagpur district alone, all the bars combined clock in a daily business of around Rs30 crore on average. With a 10% VAT imposed on it, the govt may have lost at least Rs3 crore. The statewide loss is expected to stand at Rs150 crore, said Rajeev Jaiswal, the association's president.
The permit owners argue that VAT, which is exclusively charged on sales at bars, affects their competitiveness compared to wine shops. Now the hike in excise has further widened the gap.
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"Now a nip (180 ml) of liquor costs Rs300 in a wine shop. In a bar, it is Rs400, so why would anyone come down to a permit room," said Jaiswal.
Kailash Jogani of Nagpur Chamber of Commerce Limited (NCCL), who also attended the protest meet, backed the association's suggestion to charge VAT on manufacturers. This will not only increase the revenue but lead to an equal distribution of taxes on permit room and wine shop owners, he said.
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