Kerala Assembly passes Bill making tax on wine applicable to ‘horti-wine’

The Kerala Assembly has passed an amendment aimed at making the sales tax on Indian-made wine applicable to horti-wine produced in the State.

The Kerala General Sales Tax (Amendment) Bill, 2024, after scrutiny by the Subject Committee on Economic Affairs of the House, was passed quickly and without a discussion amid Opposition UDF’s protests over the Sabarimala gold ‘theft’ row.

The Bill addresses the need for a tax structure for ‘horti-wine,’ Finance Minister K. Balagopal said. The State government had sanctioned the production of horti-wine from agricultural products available in the State except cereals through an October 2022 order. “This had been a long-pending demand of the farmers of the State. It was also meant to prevent fruits and vegetables produced in the State from going to waste,” he said on Tuesday.

In his 2023-24 Budget speech, Mr. Balagopal had declared that tax structure for Indian-made wine will be made applicable to horti-wine as well.

Sales Tax on Foreign Liquor is levied under the Kerala General Sales Tax Act, 1963. The Bill noted that the ‘horti-wine’ will have the same meaning assigned to it in the Kerala Small Scale Winery (for production of horti-wine from tropical fruits and agricultural products of Kerala) Rules, 2022. The rules define it as “the product obtained on alcoholic fermentation of tropical fruits and agricultural products and containing alcohol up to 15.5%.”