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Kerala cabinet approves 4% increase in GST of IMFL; check details

The minister had also said that increasing the number of outlets would help avoid overcrowding. He further intended to do away with the queue system in all its outlets and transform them into walk-in premium shops.

Kerala cabinet approves 4% increase in GST of IMFL; check details AJR
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First Published Nov 23, 2022, 4:58 PM IST

Kerala cabinet on Wednesday (November 23) approved a 4% increase in general sales tax (GST) on Indian-made foreign liquor (IMFL). The state government had also stated that there will be a possibility of a rise in cost of IMFL as the cost of raw material reportedly increased.

Earlier in June, Minister for Excise MV Govinda, replying to the discussion on the demands for grants in the State Assembly reportedly said the cost of raw materials for the production of IMFL had shot up. He also said that even the state-run Kerala State Beverages Corporation (Bevco) is facing a loss of Rs 3 to Rs 4 a bottle in the production of its top brands owing to the increase in the cost of spirit.

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To support his argument, minister Govinda had presented a set of sales figures. While Bevco sold as many as 1,149.11 lakh cases of foreign liquor during 2011-2016 when the UDF was in power, the state-run corporation sold only 1,036.6 lakh cases during 2016-2021 when the LDF was in power.

The minister had also said that increasing the number of outlets would help avoid overcrowding. He further intended to do away with the queue system in all its outlets and transform them into walk-in premium shops.

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In taking forward the activities of the Excise department, the government strongly centred its policies on abstinence from liquor. It also strengthened enforcement as part of tackling spurious liquor and drug abuse.

After the present LDF government came to power, as many as 19,221 cases were registered under the Abkari Act and 4,147 cases under the Narcotics and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act.

In all, 14,617 persons were arrested in cases related to the Abkari Act and 4,094 in those related to the NDPS Act.

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