Latest news with #FederationofWineMerchants'AssociationsofKarnataka
Time of India
20 hours ago
- Business
- Time of India
Govt may amend rules to auction excise licences, wine merchants up in arms
Bengaluru: Industry stakeholders and the excise department are again at loggerheads, this time over the department's move to amend rules to facilitate auctioning of certain licences. Excise minister RB Timmapur said preparations are under way for the auction and that it is likely be completed in Sept. But industry stakeholders are sceptical. They say the number of licences that can be auctioned is significantly lower than the number listed by the department. The Federation of Wine Merchants' Associations of Karnataka says licences that the excise department considers unrenewed for about 30-35 years, and those that are pending approval, have been listed for auction. You Can Also Check: Bengaluru AQI | Weather in Bengaluru | Bank Holidays in Bengaluru | Public Holidays in Bengaluru The federation said the list has a total 241 licences, including 136 under the CL-2 category (retail liquor shops) and 105 under CL-9 (bars). However, 463 unrenewed licences were reportedly allotted to Mysore Sales International Ltd (MSIL) in 2009 and hence cannot be auctioned now. Additionally, the federation contented that a total of 260 CL-2 and 216 CL-9 licences were validated following the allocation to MSIL till March 31. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like With temperatures hitting 95°F, this is the mini air conditioner everyone's buying in the U.S News of the Discovery Undo It maintained that only 42 licences of the 241 listed licences are pending renewal as 199 were from before 2008-09 when unrenewed licences were given to MSIL. Office-bearers of the federation met chief minister Siddaramaiah during his visit to Delhi last week and submitted an appeal against the department's decision to auction licences. Timmapur has said that he has asked officials to consider legal issues raised by the federation. "The rules may have to be amended to auction licences," he said, adding that merchants may be worried about the effect of new licence approvals on their businesses. A senior official told TOI that details of the auctioning process are yet to be decided. "The available licences will be auctioned only after legal hurdles are cleared," the official said, adding that the merchants' interpretation is inaccurate. The decision to auction licences comes in the backdrop of low liquor sales in the state compared to last year. The excise department said sales of beer fell by 20.4% between April 1 and July 30 this year, compared to the same period last year. Sales of Indian-made liquor (IML) also fell, but at 2% the decrease wasn't as dramatic. Interestingly, revenue for the period rose by 12.2% in 2025 compared to 2024. The department had increased additional excise duty on IML in May and excise duty on beer in Jan. Excise duty on beer now stands at 200% from the earlier 195%. However, the other component of paying Rs 130 per bulk litre (whichever is higher) was dropped. Stay updated with the latest local news from your city on Times of India (TOI). Check upcoming bank holidays , public holidays , and current gold rates and silver prices in your area.
The Hindu
19-05-2025
- Business
- The Hindu
Hike in licence fee: Bengaluru wine merchants not to lift stock for two days from Tuesday
A draft proposal to increase the excise licence fee by the Karnataka government has riled wine merchants in Bengaluru. While liquor retailers in Bengaluru have decided not to lift stocks in protest for two days starting from Tuesday, retailers at the State level could also decide to join them to protest a steep hike by the weekend. The draft notification was issued on May 15 and will come into effect on July 1 when the licences will start coming in for renewal. The increase in the licence renewal fee has come after nine years, and is part of a larger increased mop-up in excise revenue. According to K.T. Lokesh of Bangalore Wine Merchants' Association, the licence fee had been very steep, which could lead to losses as business had also come down. 'Despite petitioning the government since the pre-Budget period, the government has decided to hike the price of liquor and licence fee as well.' Liquor rates too The hike comes close on the heels of the new upward rationalised rates for Indian Made Liquor and beer, which have become expensive since May 15. The new stocks with revised rates, however, are yet to come into effect, according to the retailers. Liquor rates have seen three revision in two years. In Bengaluru, the annual CL2 licence fee has gone up from ₹6.9 lakh, including the cess, to ₹13.8 lakh while the fee, including the cess, for CL4 has gone from ₹7.47 lakh to ₹14.95 lakh. Similarly, the fee for CL6A has gone up from ₹11.5 lakh to ₹23 lakh and the fee for CL has gone up from ₹9.77 lakh to ₹19.55 lakh. For CL9, the fee has gone up from ₹8.62 lakh to ₹17.25 lakh. Similarly, licence fee in other zones have been revised. The government has also doubled licence fee for distilleries and warehouses from ₹45 lakh to ₹90 lakh, and for breweries from ₹27 lakh to ₹54 lakh. 'The government earns on an average ₹120 crore a day from the liquor indenting. We want to protest the hike by not buying liquor,' a source said on their two-day protest. Yet to decide Meanwhile, Federation of Wine Merchants' Associations of Karnataka general secretary B. Govindaraj Hegde said that meetings were under way to decide on the future course of action. 'A decision could be made by May 22 on the future course of action.'
