With Diwali approaching, the Gujarat government has announced a 150% increase in liquor permit fees.
Here are the new fees:
- New Permit: Increased from ₹10,000 to ₹25,000
- Renewal: Increased from ₹5,000 to ₹20,000
The extra revenue from these fee increases will go to the Rogi Kalyan Samiti (RKS) of the Civil Hospital in Surat. New permits will be valid for one year, while renewals will be valid for two years.
Currently, about 45,000 people hold liquor permits in Gujarat, up from 39,888 in 2023. Over the last three years, 14,696 new applications have been submitted, and 30,112 permits have been renewed.
Ahmedabad has the highest number of permit holders at 13,456, followed by Surat with 9,238, Rajkot with 4,502, Vadodara with 2,743, Jamnagar with 2,039, Gandhinagar with 1,851, and Porbandar with 1,700.
According to a government notification from February 2024, the state has generated significant revenue from these permits, earning ₹8.75 crore from new permits and ₹29.80 crore from renewals, totaling ₹38.56 crore.
