Thiruvananthapuram: In a new development that could affect a large section of alcohol consumers in Kerala, liquor manufacturers have warned the government that they would be forced to end the distribution of quarter bottles of 180 ml in the state if a ban on plastic bottles is implemented. 

The state government had banned plastic bottles with less than 300 ml capacity. A petition was soon filed in the High Court to apply the ban to liquor bottles, and the court sought a report from the Excise Department based on this.

Prior to deciding on banning plastic liquor bottles, the Excise invited the opinion of liquor firms, who replied that they would be forced to withdraw quarter bottles from the Kerala market in the event of a ban.

The quarter bottle is mainly consumed by people belonging to low-income groups. However, the state government’s annual revenue from selling these bottles is a whopping ₹650 crore.

The High Court had also directed the Excise to explain the speciality of the plastic liquor bottles currently sold and the methods adopted for disposal. According to liquor companies, the production cost of a case of 48 quarter bottles would increase by up to ₹250 if plastic bottles are replaced with those made of glass. The firms also pointed out that glass bottles were not widely available.

Sometime ago, Kerala State Beverages Corporation Limited (BEVCO), which has a monopoly over foreign liquor sales in the state, instructed liquor companies to supply full bottles (750 ml) in glass containers. However, BEVCO had to withdraw the order after the manufacturers stopped producing full bottles.

In a related move, the Chairman and Managing Director of BEVCO has submitted a proposal to the government to collect used plastic bottles through the Haritha Keralam Mission. A similar move in 2017, utilising the services of a company named Clean Kerala, had not succeeded.

Plant making Jawan to reopen soon

The production of ‘Jawan’, a popular rum brand, was stopped following a fire in the warehouse of Travancore Sugars in Thiruvalla. A revenue loss of ₹7.08 crore has occurred over 19 days due to this incident.

The average daily production of Jawan was 8,000 cases, with the firm selling each case at ₹466 to BEVCO. However, after taxes, the rum was sold at ₹5,850 per case at BEVCO outlets, taking the total revenue loss to the government to ₹88.92 crore in 19 days. However, the government did not suffer a tax loss due to the sales of other brands in place of Jawan.

Meanwhile, authorities at Travancore Sugars said that the plant, which was closed down to install a fire safety mechanism, is likely to resume operations within a couple of days.