State Govt Allows Microbreweries in Telangana
The state government is now looking to relax the regulations by reducing the minimum plant area requirement from 300 square metres to 100.
Hyderabad: The Cabinet on Monday allowed the establishment of microbreweries at all municipal corporations by amending the Telangana Micro Brewery Rules, 2015. Till now, microbreweries were allowed to operate only within the GHMC limits. At present, 18 microbreweries are operational in Hyderabad.
The Cabinet, which met under the chairmanship of Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy, at the Secretariat, also decided to abolish 15 inter-state check posts located at the state borders. This aligns with the Centre’s directive to remove such checkposts following the introduction of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) in 2017.
The Union road transport and highways ministry had earlier asked states to dismantle border check posts, as the VAHAN and SARATHI platforms now provide centralised online data on vehicles and drivers.
The Cabinet's decision is a significant step towards meeting the growing demand for craft beer, particularly during peak seasons like summer. The previous BRS government introduced the microbrewery policy in 2015, positioning Hyderabad as a competitive player alongside other metropolitan cities like Bengaluru, Mumbai, Pune and Gurugram.
The excise department had issued a notification in 2015 calling for applications for microbrewery establishments, resulting in around 60 applications by 2016. However, only 18 microbreweries were granted licenses due to the high investment requirement — approximately Rs.2 crore. The government had also set a license fee of Rs.3 lakh, plus an additional security deposit of Rs.1 lakh.
Under the current rules, microbreweries are allowed to brew up to 1,000 litres of beer daily, but the beer must be consumed on-site, as it cannot be bottled or sold off-premises.
Additionally, the draught beer cannot be served after 36 hours of production. In terms of physical space, the rules mandate that a microbrewery should have a minimum of 1,000 square metres of plinth area, which includes designated areas for the brewing plant, serving space and restaurant.
The state government is now looking to relax the regulations by reducing the minimum plant area requirement from 300 square metres to 100. Sources indicate that a fresh notification will soon be issued to invite new microbrewery applications, along with new guidelines aimed at easing the financial burden on potential applicants.
