The Karnataka government has proposed changes to the Excise rules in the state to lower the legal age for the purchase of liquor from 21 years to 18 years. The proposal is based on the recommendation of a committee set up under retired bureaucrat V Yashwanth and is in response to demands from the liquor lobby. The Finance Department published a draft of the proposed changes on January 9 and is inviting objections from the public within 30 days.
The proposal to lower the age is included in a draft notification to amend the Karnataka Excise (General Conditions of Licences) Rules, 1967, which deals with the legal age for purchasing liquor. The amendment specifically proposes to replace the current age requirement of 21 years with 18 years by amending rule 10.
Furthermore, the proposal also includes amendments to the rules for liquor vending units on highways. Reports said that the government was looking at amending provisions and including orders issued by the Supreme Court earlier prohibiting liquor vending units on the highways in 2016. The court order prohibits liquor vends from operating within 500 metres from the edge of the highway in places that do not fall under any corporation, municipality, town panchayat and gram panchayat where the population exceeds 5,000. Additionally, the court’s modified order prohibited liquor vends from operating within 220 metres in urban areas and places with a population of more than 20,000 or less had also been added.
Additionally, the state government has also proposed an amendment to the Karnataka Excise (Brewery) (Amendment) Rules, 2023, fixing excise duty on the production of beer manufactured in the microbrewery. This is aimed at promoting the growth of microbreweries in the state and increasing revenue from the sector.