Micro-breweries allowed in state

Bhanu P Lohumi

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Tribune News Service

Shimla, April 15

Fresh beer will be available to locals and tourists in Himachal this year as provisions for encouraging micro-breweries have been made in the Excise Policy for 2018-19 and measures taken to encourage the wine industry.

Three brewpubs (A brewpub can be a pub or restaurant that brews beer on the premises) will be opened in major tourist destinations in Shimla, Manali and Dharamsala while more units will come up, said Excise and Taxation Commissioner R Selvam.

The Brew Estate is expected to open the first model on The Mall in Shimla.

The cost of brewing machine in Germany is about Rs 1.3 crore but the machines manufactured by China are cheaper and much in demand.

Moreover, beer lovers will not have to shed extra money from their pockets like in the past one year as the department has done away with minimum sale price (MSP) and re-introduced maximum retail price (MRP).

Now, the beer will be sold on the printed rate (Rs 80-140) and overcharging by vendors will call for strict punishment, even sealing of vends.

Wine industry in high spirit

Giving a fresh lease of life to the local wine industry, the Excise and Taxation Department has reduced the licence fee from Rs 2 lakh to Rs 10,000 and allowed wine producers to sell it directly to hotels and restaurants, besides wholesalers and duty on wine imported from outside has been increased to promote the local wine. At present, there are 9-10 wine manufacturers in the state.

Loss for first time

For the first time, the government suffered a loss in excise revenue as the Himachal Pradesh Beverages Corporation, which was allotted vends in Chamba, Una and Kinnaur districts, did not pay the licence fee.

While the figures for the year are yet to be compiled, the estimated loss is likely to be around Rs 150 crore.

The revenue collections during 2017-18 (up to December 2017) were Rs 4,613 crore and the department is expecting an additional revenue of Rs 1,400 crore during the last quarter.

The target for 2018-19 has been increased to Rs 8,248 crore which included GST (Rs 4,065 crore), Excise (Rs 1,552 crore), VAT (Rs 1,319 crore), motor vehicle tax (Rs 300 crore), other tax and duties (Rs 351 crore), electricity duty (Rs 350 crore) and stamp duty and registration (Rs 270 crore).

The revenue shortfall is dedicated to structural variations after implementation of the GST, changes in service tax structure, enforcement issues and the fact that Himachal is a consumer state. However, the state will get a compensation from the Centre at the rate of Rs 394 crore per month for the next five years.

Beer on MRP now 

• Three brewpubs will be opened in Shimla, Manali and Dharamsala while more units will come up
• The Brew Estate is expected to open the first model on The Mall in Shimla
• Beer lovers will not have to shed extra money like in the past one year as the department has done away with MSP and re-introduced  and re-introduced MRP