Excise panel holds meeting, discusses unchanged tax rates, MRPs of liquor in Delhi

The issues of unchanged excise tax rates and maximum retail prices (MRP) of liquor in Delhi were discussed during a meeting of the PWD minister Parvesh Verma-led committee, sources said.

The committee is tasked with preparing the draft of a new excise policy. The meeting was held here on Friday.

Delhi loses revenue to NCR cities, including Ghaziabad and Noida in Uttar Pradesh, and Faridabad and Gurugram in Haryana, due to lower excise tax rate and MRPs, sources said on Friday.

''The excise tax rate in Delhi has not been revised since 2014, and the MRP was last updated three years ago. A revision in these two will help to tap the full potential of the retail liquor trade in Delhi and generate more revenue for the government,'' an official source said.

Chief Minister Rekha Gupta earlier said that her government was working to form a new ''transparent, socially responsible'' excise policy that would also help in generating more revenue for the government.

Sources said the draft of the new excise policy is likely to be ready in a couple of months, after which it will be put in the public domain for feedback. The policy will be notified after approval by the Cabinet and the Delhi lieutenant governor.

The committee, in its meetings held earlier, took feedback from stakeholders, including manufacturers and retailers, on excise revenue, retail margin per bottle, ease of doing business, legal drinking age and scope for private players, among other aspects.

The fixed margins per bottle in Delhi put all kinds of liquor in one segment, encouraging retail vendors to stock cheaper, less popular brands. This also encourages brand pushing and the unavailability of more popular brands and high-end liquor, sources added.