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Wine festival goes to tier II cities

State Board proposes to keep the alcoholic beverage out of Excise Act ambit
Last Updated 06 July 2013, 19:53 IST

The Karnataka Wine Board, a State government undertaking which is all set to commence sale of wine in select Hopcoms units in Bangalore, is requesting the government to get wine out of the Excise Act purview.

The Board will soon place a proposal before the government to exclude wine from the Excise Act as at present there are too many restrictions to sell the same as it falls under the alcohol category. Percentage of alcohol ranges from eight to 14 per cent. The Board has sought permission from the Excise department to allow sale of wine in the Horticultural Producers’ Co-operative Marketing and Processing Society Ltd (Hopcoms) units in Sadashivanagar, Indiranagar, Frazer Town, Cole’s Park and Milton Street. The Board will provide refrigerators for the Hopcom units to preserve wine, according to Board Managing Director (MD) Mahantesh Murgod.

“Rule 5 of the Excise Act specifies where alcohol is permitted to be sold. At present, it is not allowed to be sold/served near schools and places of worship. But wine is not hard liquor. It is considered a health drink and natural fruit alcohol. So, we will request the chief minister to exclude wine from the ambit of the Excise Act so that sale can be promoted. The department has already relaxed certain norms for the sale. But we need to create the market to encourage farmers to grow grapes suitable for wine preparation,” the MD said.

Sale at Hopcoms outlets

Murgod said women in urban areas were keen to buy wine, but they were shy of going to liquor shops to purchase the same. So, efforts are being made to make it available in Hopcoms units, he added.

The Board was of the view that the present system of granting permits for opening wine boutiques and wine taverns was cumbersome as the Excise department as well as the Revenue department were involved. Instead, the Wine Board should function as a single window agency to issue permits.

Bangalore is the third highest consumer of wine in the country, while Mumbai and Delhi occupy the first two slots in that order. In Karnataka, after Bangalore, good quantum of wine is sold in Mangalore, Koppal, Mysore, Udupi, Kodagu and Belgaum, according to the Board. Murgod said, wine festivals, on the lines of that held at Lalbagh in Bangalore, are going to be conducted in Mangalore during Christmas this year, during Dasara in Mysore and in September in Belgaum. The dates are yet to be worked out.

“The intention is to make people move away from hard liquor to wine. We are explaining the health benefits of consuming wine at the wine festivals and workshops. In Koppal alone, nine wine boutiques and an equal number of wine taverns have come up. So, we want to popularise wine consumption in smaller cities and towns,“ the MD said.

Till 2007, wine category grapes were grown in about 500 acres in the State, while it is now cultivated in 2,000 acres as the demand for wine is growing. The Board has permitted 39 wine boutiques to come up in the State. Here, no hard liquor is allowed to be sold. And, wine is sold at maximum retail price. Nearly, Rs 114 crore worth of fruit and fortified wine were sold in 2012-13 by the Karnataka State Beverages Corporation Limited.

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(Published 06 July 2013, 19:53 IST)

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