New Delhi, April 28 : Parliament on Thursday passed a alcohol production bill, that sought-after to transfer the management over industries manufacturing potable alcohol from the central government to the state governments, with the Rajya Sabha giving its nod to the legislation.
The Industries (Development and Regulation) amendment Bill, 2015, amending the 1951 act, had already been approved by the Lok Sabha in Dec last year.
Commerce and business Minister Nirmala Sitharaman added the modification would bring potable alcohol underneath the jurisdiction of states, and clearly demarcates what’s inside the powers of the centre and what’s at intervals the powers of states.
The 1951 act provides for development and regulation of sure industries as well as fermentation (which includes production of alcohol), and its 1st schedule includes all industries that are regulated underneath the act. The alcohol production bill amends the schedule to exclude production of alcohol for potable functions from the scope of the act.
The Supreme Court in its judgement on Jan twenty, 1997, had demarcated the regulation of production of alcohol between the central and state governments within the case of province plant and another vs. Union of India and others.
The court dominated that central government ought to regulate the assembly of alcohol for industrial use and states ought to regulate the assembly of alcohol for potable purpose (domestic consumption).
The alcohol production bill amends conforms to the Supreme Court’s call.
“This are a few things that the Supreme Court had generally indicated in its judgement in 1997,” Sitharaman added.
