Overview
- The Union government repealed the Lakshadweep Prohibition Regulation, 1979 and notified the Lakshadweep Excise Regulation, 2026, with the Gazette entry published on June 5, 2026.
- The new law creates a full licensing system that covers manufacture, import, transport, sale and consumption of alcohol and allows government-owned firms and agencies to obtain licences for import and retail.
- The administration fixed high excise duties to limit consumption, setting rates at 400% for Indian Made Foreign Liquor and foreign spirits, 200% for beer and 80% for wine.
- The territory’s Administrator retains powers to set purchase and possession limits, bar sales in specific areas, reimpose prohibition locally, and the minimum legal purchase age is 21 years.
- Local leaders, religious groups and residents have protested the move as imposed without consent in a Muslim-majority, largely Scheduled Tribe territory while officials say the policy will help Lakshadweep compete with regional tourist destinations such as the Maldives.