Under the new Excise Policy of the Delhi government, liquor could be 8 to 9 percent costly with the opening of private shops from November 17. The Delhi government's Excise Department said in an order on Thursday that wholesale prices of all types of liquor are likely to rise by 8 to 9 percent. The Department of Excise is currently in the process of fixing the Maximum Retail Price (MRP) of liquor brands registered in Delhi.
Prices to go up as per Excise Policy
In this regard, a liquor trader said, "The increase in wholesale price could lead to a at least 5 to 10 percent increase in liquor prices. However, how much prices will go up will be known only after the new retail system is implemented as per the Excise Policy for 2021-22. Senior officials of the Department of Excise refused to give any information in this regard for the time being. As per the order, excise fee and value added tax (VAT) have been added to the licence fee in the new Excise Policy 2021-22.
Excise fee and VAT will be levied at the rate of one percent each at the wholesale price, based on which the cost of liquor supply will be evaluated to retailers. ''The wholesale price is likely to go up by about 8-9 percent due to revised norms included in the cost of Indian and foreign liquor under the new Excise Policy 2021-22,'' the order says. According to the order, it may have a similar effect on other categories of alcohol.