In a first, Delhi govt allows micro breweries in city

NEW DELHI: Here's some good news for beer lovers in the national Capital – the Delhi government has allowed micro breweries for the first time in the city.

The Delhi Cabinet has approved a proposal of the excise department to allow micro-brew pubs. At present, people wanting to taste freshly-brewed beer have to travel to Gurugram and Faridabad in Haryana where such breweries exist in large numbers.

"The Delhi Cabinet recently approved a new excise policy for 2017-18, under which micro breweries will be allowed in the national Capital," a senior government official said.

Hotels, malls and other entities will soon be able to offer freshly-brewed beer to their customers.

The official also said that three applications are currently pending with the excise department for opening micro breweries in Delhi.

"As the Cabinet has approved the department's proposal, a decision on these applications will be taken at the earliest," the official added.

Micro breweries produce a small amount of lager and are usually set up in pubs that cater to niche customers. Haryana was one of the first states to have allowed micro-brew pubs.

Micro breweries originated in Germany and have gained popularity globally in the past decades including in the US, Japan, Canada, Belgium and the UK, where the term was first coined in the 1970s.

Earlier this month, the Delhi Cabinet had approved the new excise policy for 2017-18.

A Delhi government official said that the new excise policy will be effective from January to March 31, as there are only three months left in the current financial year.

He added this is the third time the AAP-led Delhi government has not increased the excise duty on liquor, resulting in no hike in the prices of alcohol. "The government will soon start working on preparing new excise policy for the next financial year," the official added.