Excise Duty

Excise duty is an indirect tax levied by the government on the manufacture or production of specific goods within the country — historically distinct from customs duty (levied on imports) and sales tax (levied on sales transactions). In India, Central Excise Duty was a major revenue source for the Union Government until July 2017, when it was subsumed into the Goods and Services Tax (GST) framework under the CGST Act. However, excise duty continues to apply to certain products outside the GST ambit — most notably petroleum products (petrol, diesel, ATF, natural gas) and alcohol for human consumption, which remain under central and state excise regimes respectively. For investors on Ventura Securities analysing oil and gas companies, alcohol manufacturers (breweries and distilleries), and cigarette producers, excise duty rates and any government-announced changes to these rates are directly material to product pricing, volume demand, cost structures, and earnings — making excise duty policy announcements significant investment catalysts for affected sectors.