Bengaluru, March 6 -- The Karnataka government on Friday announced a major overhaul of the state's excise policy, stating that it will no longer fix the retail prices of alcoholic beverages.
The reform was unveiled by Chief Minister Siddaramaiah while presenting the Karnataka Budget for 2026-27 in the Assembly.
Under the new policy, the government-administered system of price fixation for liquor will be scrapped, allowing manufacturers to determine prices based on market conditions. The change is scheduled to come into effect from April 2026.
The state will also introduce a new taxation system known as Alcohol-in-Beverage (AIB), under which excise duty will be calculated based on the actual alcohol content in the beverage rather than the...