SIN TAX on Liquor for EMRT 108 Ambulance Services

Problem Statement

Himachal Pradesh is a hilly state with vulnerability to Natural disasters and man made disasters and hence requires a robust transportation system to reduce the mortality and morbidity, In order achieve this State of Himachal Pradesh has envisaged the emergency medical response and transport society on 30/11/2009 to catalyse the emergency response, The state runs the 108 ambulance services under the EMRT society in the whole state of HP.

Alcohol consumption is a social and medical problem. To reduce the incidence of alcohol related diseases it is imperative to reduce the consumption and to achieve this there was a need of hour to put a Sin tax on liquor consumption.

Programme Description

The State proposed a SIN TAX on every bottle of liquor sold in the state. It is a Pigovian Tax by excise or sales Tax specially levied on certain market activity deemed harmful to the society and individuals. A tax at the rate of Rs. 1/per bottle was levied in 2018-19 on every bottle of liquor sold in the state through Excise and Taxation department and the revenue thus generated to be credited to the EMRT Society for supporting the services taken up under the society.

Programme Outcomes

The revenue generated by putting SIN TAX is a cost benefit commodity as this is the first of its kind of initiative and tax levied on the liquor bottles as Rs. 1 per bottle has been a Pivogian Tax.

The amount generated by taxing the liquor is Seven Crore Ninety Five Lac Thirty Thousand Five Hundred Ninety Nine.

Since alcohol does not come under the purview of GST but is covered under VAT, this type of SIN TAX can be levied and utilised for the benefit of health and health related promotional activities and become a supportive component of the state government to run emergency and in public health Programme in states.

Scalability

The Sin Taxes levied can be associated with other health related programmes and hence can he utilised for improving the diagnostics and transmission of vitals and screening tests of the patients when they are being transferred to a health facility.

Source : We Care Coffee Table Book - Good, Replicable and Innovative Practices 2019