Liquor price in Delhi to go up by 70 pct from today as new coronavirus cess comes into effect

People in Delhi will have to pay 70 per cent more for each bottle of liquor after the state government imposed a new cess from Tuesday onwards. The fee was approved by Delhi’s Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijal and a notification was later issued by the Delhi government’s finance department. The fee would apply at “70% of the maximum retail price of all categories of liquor sold through written licences for consumption off the premises,” read the order.

"The timing of the hike is apt given that demand is much more than supply as liquor shops have been shut ever since the lockdown started. This may serve a dual purpose, one of filling the  near-dry coffers of the State government and the other as acting as a deterrent, to some extent, for extra-zealous consumption. The other States are also likely to follow suit, sooner rather than later,” Rajat Bose, Partner, Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas & Co said.

The order was issued late on Monday night under the scope of powers conferred to the government of the national capital territory of Delhi under sub-section (1) of section 81 of the Delhi Excise Act, 2009 (Delhi Act Act 10 of 2010). The order has been titled "Delhi Excise (Amendment) Rules, 2020".

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This means that a bottle priced Rs 1,000 earlier, will now cost you Rs 1,700. The move is expected to boost government revenue.

Earlier, the liquor shops were opened in Delhi on Monday after almost 40 days. However, many of them had to be closed with people lining up outside in close proximity. About 150 government-run liquor shops have been allowed to open from 9 am to 6:30 pm in accordance with the latest lockdown relaxations given by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA).

Delhi registered another big spike of 349 new cases of Covid-19 that took the national capital’s tally to 4,898, the health department said in a statement Monday night.