Overview
- Customs investigators have detained dozens of bulk Scotch containers at Indian ports after the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence directed officials to apply a 150% duty to imports it classifies as concentrated alcoholic preparations.
- Commerce Secretary Rajesh Agrawal said on Friday that the government will respect the 75% duty negotiated under the India‑UK free trade deal and expects a technical resolution within days.
- The DRI’s argument rests on alcohol‑by‑volume differences—imported concentrates at roughly 62–66% ABV versus finished Scotch at about 42–46% ABV—which it says puts products in a different Harmonised System heading and outside the FTA concession.
- Major firms are affected: reporting shows Pernod Ricard and Diageo each have more than 40 containers awaiting clearance and Bacardi has additional containers, and companies are reluctant to pay the higher duty because delays could disrupt blending and bottling for Indian‑Made Foreign Liquor.
- The row is an early implementation test for the July India‑UK trade pact because bulk shipments make up about 80% of Scotch imports by volume and the outcome will shape how tariff commitments are applied to goods that undergo further processing in India.