Karnataka hikes liquor prices

Bengaluru: Liquor, including beer, is set to get dearer in Karnataka as the state government on Friday proposed to hike additional excise duty in the 2023-24 budget presented by Chief Minister Siddaramaiah in the Legislative Assembly on Friday.Siddaramaiah, who holds the Finance portfolio, proposed to increase the existing rates of the duty on Indian Made Foreign Liquor (IMFL) by 20 per cent on all 18 slabs. He also proposed to increase the duty on beer from 175 per cent to 185 per cent. "Even after the increase in excise rates, the price of liquor in our state would be lower when compared to the neighbouring states," the Chief Minister said in the budget speech.