The government's decision to remove additional customs duty (ACD) on imported wine, spirits and beer has been greeted with cheers by importers, who said it was a much needed move."We are happy about the decision. This is what we have been asking for the last four years," Sunil Mehdiratta, secretary general, International Spirits and Wines Association of India told PTI.He, however, said it was yet to be seen how states were going to react to it."Duties are still very high at the state level," he said, adding that states may have to work according to the new norms.When contacted, a spokesperson of the UB Group, the largest player in the sector, said it was yet to receive the notification and would be "unable to comment".The spokesperson, however, said: "If this is in fact the case, it is still not clear if the government has empowered the states to collect duty on imported products, equivalent to the state level, which is what the intent of the central government is."The Centre is also intending to increase the basic duty on wines and beer to 150%. This also is still not clear, the UB Group spokesperson added.India today scrapped the ACD on imported liquor, wine and beer following a complaint by the European Union and the United States to the World Trade Organisation.The additional customs duty imposed by India hitherto ranges between 20-150%. This is over and above the basic customs duty of 150% allowed by WTO. The multiple duties, in some cases, took the overall tax incidence to up to 550%.
