West Bengal Refuses To Succumb To Beer Pressure; Demand Fizzles Out After Imposition Of High Duties

The consumption of Beer in West Bengal has dropped sharply, after a 40 per cent increase in beer excise duty was imposed by the state government since the dawn of 2018, reports ET.

The state raised the duty to 45.5 per cent from 30 per cent in January. Despite the levy being reduced to 42.7 per cent in March, supplies dropped, making the demand for beer much lesser. As a result, the Bengal resident is moving towards cheaper alternatives.

Brewing companies are lobbying for lower duties, to reduce MRP, as it went up from an average of Rs 100 to Rs 145-175 a bottle.

A year ago, West Bengal restricted liquor sales only through state-owned shops, similar to states such as Kerala, Delhi, Rajasthan and Tamil Nadu.

“United Breweries threatened to boycott supplies after the first duty change in January, which forced the government to tweak its initial hike,” said an official.

Maharashtra too increased the duty by 17 per cent, leading to price growth by Rs 10-15 per bottle. As a result, sales fell 15 per cent between January and October.