Ready-to-drink alcoholic beverages get a high

MUMBAI : Ready-to-drink (RTD) alcoholic beverages will soon have a stronger version, as the state has cleared the long-pending proposal to increase its alcohol content. Higher taxes, however, may make the drinks costlier for you.

Currently, RTD or what the government calls mild liquor contains less than 5% alcohol. The alcohol content in the new version of the beverages, which will hit the market soon, will be up to 8%.

The state law and judiciary department on August 1 issued a notification for production and sale of the new drinks, a copy of which is with HT, amending the Maharashtra Prohibition Act.

The stronger RTD beverages, with alcohol content in the 5%-8% range, have been included in the mild liquor B category of the Bombay Foreign Liquor Rules of

1953.

The existing RTDS (with alcohol content of less than 5%) are in the mild liquor A category and their sale can continue.

RTD liquors are similar to types of beer – mild with 5% and stronger ones with 8% alcohol content. Under the Bombay Foreign Liquor Rules of 1953, beer is

liquor.

For stronger beverages, manufactures will have to pay 200% of the manufacturing cost (or ₹200 for a bulk litre of alcohol contents, whichever is higher) as tax. The tax for the existing RTD liquor is 175% or ₹42 for a bulk litre of alcohol content, or whichever is higher. “The higher excise

duty is to prevent excess consumption by youngsters,” said a senior official from the excise department.

Trade sources, however, said manufacturers will have to keep the production cost of the new brew low in order to make it competitive. “A 275-ml bottle of the existing RTD liquor is sold offmild the-counter for ₹128. The retail price is fixed after paying 175% excise duty. When the duty is 200% on production cost, the retail price will go up accordingly,” said a wine shop owner from Mahim.

Bali Rekhi, joint president of Maharashtra Wine Merchants’ Association, said the manufacturers will try to keep the production cost of the new liquor under control.

Excise department sources, meanwhile, said the cost of beer or any other alcoholic beverage has not been reduced, even though sales figures across various segments plummeted last year compared to the previous year .

“The fall was on account of the Supreme Court’s ban on liquor outlets within 500m of highways. It had resulted in closure of more than 50% outlets. However, the partial lifting of the ban helped stabilise the revenue inflow,” sources said.