Chandigarh: Beer prices in the city are set to increase by around Rs 30 per bottle. On Wednesday, the Chandigarh administration issued the excise policy 2026-2027.Darshan Singh Kler, president of the Chandigarh Wine Contractor Association, said, “For a beer bottle currently priced at Rs 120 per bottle, the price will increase to Rs 150 per bottle. For other categories of liquor, including Indian Made Foreign Liquor (IMFL), country liquor and imported liquor, prices will remain largely unchanged.”The minimum retail sale prices of country liquor and IMFL are kept unchanged for the coming fiscal compared with the outgoing financial year.The minimum retail sale price of Indian beer (strong/light/mild) is revised and fixed range-wise based on the Ex-Brewery Price (EBP). EBP is the price at which manufacturers (breweries) sell beer to wholesalers, before adding excise duty, wholesaler margins and retailer margins.While the excise duty is kept unchanged, a marginal increase of up to 2% in Ex-Distillery Price (EDP) is for country liquor, IMFL, Indian beer and Indian wines, considering inflation and rising raw material costs. This increase will not apply to imported wines, imported beer and imported foreign liquor (IFL).Any proposal for an increase in EDP/EBP will be considered only after completion of the first quarter of the Excise Policy Year 2026–27, subject to uninterrupted supply of brands.The administration kept unchanged the total number of retail sale liquor vends at 97, which will operate in the city. The total reserve price for licensing units for the Excise Policy Year 2026–27 was fixed at Rs 454.35 crore, which is only marginally higher than under the outgoing policy at Rs 443.51 crore. The liquor vend at Palsora village has the highest reserve price of Rs 11.4 crore; under the excise policy 2025-2026, it was Rs 10.2 crore.BOX1: Minimum retail sale price of Indian beer (strong/light/mild) for the excise policy 2026-27EBP Range | 650 ml | 500 ml | 330 ml 0-500 | Rs 150/- | Rs 120/- | Rs 75/- 501-650 | Rs 160/- | Rs 130/- | Rs 80/- 651-900 | Rs 180/- | Rs 140/- | Rs 100/- 901-1100 | Rs 190/- | Rs 150/- | Rs 110/- 1101-1300 | Rs 200/- | Rs 160/- | Rs 120/- 1301-above | Rs 210/- | Rs 200/- | Rs 150/-BOX2: Top reserve priced liquor vendsLocation | Reserve price Palsora | Rs 11.4 cr Dhanas | Rs 9.6 cr Khuda Lahora/Khuda Jassu (On Madhya Marg) | Rs 8.3 cr Dariya | Rs 8.1 cr Indl Area Phase 1 (Other than MW market) | Rs 8 cr
