Toddy tapping to be licensed from next year

Moving amendments to the Excise Ordinance yesterday in Parliament, the Government revealed it plans to prohibit tapping coconut and palmyrah trees without obtaining licences in the future. 

Once enacted, the amended ordinance will provide for tapping only the Kithul tree for toddy without a licence.

The amendment is cited as the Excise (Amendment) Act, which is proposed to come into operation on 1 January 2018 by repealing and replacing paragraph (b) and (c) of Section 15 of the Excise Ordinance. The replacement paragraphs (b) and (c) provides: “No tree producing toddy, other than the Kithul tree, will be tapped. No toddy will be drawn or lowered from any tree other than the Kithul tree.”

Prior to the proposed amendments, the tapping of coconut and palmyrah trees did not require any licensing.

According to Section 20 of the Excise Ordinance, when any exclusive privilege of manufacturing and sale of toddy has been granted under Section 19, the Minister could declare that the written permission of the grantee to draw toddy to have the same force and effect under a licence obtained from the District Secretariat suitable for the purpose. (AH)