Tax dept still sitting on license fee hike proposal, Kerala's liquor policy gathers dust

Thiruvananthapuram: Since the proposal to raise the licensing fee of bar owners was stalled by the tax department, the liquor policy could not be brought up at the Cabinet meeting on Wednesday. 

The file containing the excise department’s proposal to increase the license fee from Rs 30 lakhs to Rs 35 lakhs has been under consideration by the tax department for months. The proposal also contains a recommendation to distribute toddy shop licenses online. 

The government expects to earn crores of revenue by raising the license fee. Bar owners had expressed their objection to the fee hike. It is believed that this objection is the cause of the delay in implementing the liquor policy which was supposed to come into effect on 1 April.