Himachal imposes Covid cess on liquor

Liquor to be costlier in Himachal Pradesh with the state Cabinet on Friday deciding to levy Covid cess, government officials said.

ow Rs 5 per bottle would be charged on country liquor, Rs 10 per bottle on Indian Made Foreign Liquor, Rs 5 per bottle on beer made in India, Rs 25 per bottle on foreign imported liquor and Rs 10 per bottle on Indian wine or cider.

The Cabinet, presided over by Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur, also decided to hike import fee on all kinds of spirits used by the industries for manufacturing sanitisation products from Rs 10.50 per bulk litres to Rs 15 per bulk litres.

The Cabinet sub-committee constituted for post COVID-19 economic revival made a presentation before the Cabinet regarding its recommendations for expediting developmental works, mobilization of resources and possible support to different sectors.

The sub-committee also recommended that returning Himachalis may be met for their skill assets and information must be shared with the Labour and Employment and Industries Departments for their utilization in available sectors within the state.

It also suggested measures for harvesting agriculture and horticulture crops in the coming seasons.

The Cabinet sub-committee also gave its recommendations on plugging revenue losses due to mining operations and for fast-tracking forest clearances.

The Cabinet gave its nod to increase the curfew relaxation daily to seven hours from five hours.

With a view to provide 120 days minimum assured unskilled employment guarantee to every household of the urban local bodies, the Cabinet gave its consent to implement Mukhya Mantri Shahri Ajeevika Guarantee Yojna in the state.

This would help strengthen urban infrastructure and provision of quality civic amenities in urban local bodies. A sum of Rs 25.20 crore is expected to be spent under this programme.

In order to boost the employability of youth and enhance their employment prospective, the Cabinet gave its nod for setting up a centre of excellence at Waknaghat in Solan district under an ADB-funded programme as a specialised centre for high-end training in tourism and hospitality sectors as well as IT sector.

( With inputs from IANS )