Alcohol
The state government holds a monopoly over liquor sale in the state, after the state banned foreign liquor shops, through the government owned Kerala State Beverages Corporation (KSBC). Every year, liquor sales have been rising and the total sales of liquor and beer during 2010-11 fiscal year is expected to be about Rs. 6,700 crore.
The government applies the highest state tax on liquor (around 120%). This earns it high revenues. Total revenue by way of taxes on the sale of liquor was Rs.5,539 crore in 2009-10. Kerala has the highest per capita consumption: over eight litres (1.76 gallons) per person a year, in the nation, overtaking traditionally hard-drinking states like Punjab and Haryana. Rum and brandy are the preferred drinks in Kerala in a country where whisky outsells every other liquor. Taxes on alcohol is a major source of revenue for the state government. More than 40% of revenues for its annual budget come from liquor sales. Revenues from alcohol to the state's exchequer have registered a 100% rise over the past four years.
Read more about this topic: Economy Of Kerala
Famous quotes containing the word alcohol:
“[T]ea, that uniquely English meal, that unnecessary collation at which no stimulants—neither alcohol nor meat—are served, that comforting repast of which to partake is as good as second childhood.”
—Angela Carter (1940–1992)
“No power on earth or above the bottomless pit has such influence to terrorize and make cowards of men as the liquor power. Satan could not have fallen on a more potent instrument with which to thrall the world. Alcohol is king!”
—Eliza “Mother” Stewart (1816–c. 1908)
“Some parents feel that if they introduce their children to alcohol gradually in the home environment, the children will learn to use alcohol in moderation. I’m not sure that’s such a good idea. First of all, alcohol is not healthy for the growing child. Second, introducing alcohol to a child suggests that you condone drinking—even to the point where you want to teach your child how to drink.”
—Lawrence Balter (20th century)