Come April 1, Goa will no more be the tipplers' paradise!
You will have to shell out more for your favourite drink in this tourist state as the government proposed to raise the excise duties on sale of liquor, with the hikes ranging from 20-50 per cent for all categories.
The hike in excise duties and fees will result in an additional excise revenue of Rs 100 crore. The state's excise revenue collection was Rs 477.67 crore during the financial year 2018-19.
However, even after the hike, alcohol price in Goa is expected to be lower than that in other states.
On Thursday, Chief Minister Pramod Sawant presented a revenue surplus budget with an outlay of Rs 21,056.35 crore in the Legislative Assembly.
The budget prioritised resumption of mining, development of tourism in the hinterland, medical and eco-tourism and increase in the ease of doing business in the state.
It also spoke about developing Goa as a "convention centre and education hub".
The budget, with revenue surplus of Rs 353.61 crore, proposed an outlay of Rs 21,056.35 crore.
