2 January 2020 12:01 am
By Sandun A. Jayasekera
The government has suspended the import of Ethanol for the production of liquor in the country with immediate effect.
Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa has issued the relevant gazette notification as the Minister of Finance yesterday (Jan.1) prohibiting the importation of Ethanol as Ethanol produced in Sri Lanka is sufficient to meet the domestic demand.
Import and use of Ethanol as the main ingredient to produce alcoholic liquor had become a big issue in the country due to the high import during the previous government as the Importation of Ethanol had been carried out under political influence.
Further, high import duties encouraged smuggling and resulted in the loss of taxes when the product is made domestically.