The Kerala Budget 2023 was tabled by Finance Minister KN Balagopal on Friday.

Balagopal, while presenting the Budget 2023, said it aims to levy a Social Security Cess at the rate of Rs 20 for each bottle of IMFL having MRP between Rs 500 and Rs 999, reports said.

The Finance Minister further said another crucial measure for the Social Security Seed Fund is proposed to be brought by bringing the Social Security Cess on sale of fuel including petrol and diesel at the rate of Rs 2 per litre.

Kerala Budget 2023: What’s cheaper?

• 10% reduction in taxes on contract and state carriage vehicles
• One-time tax on electric motor cabs reduced by 5%
• Tax on vehicles reduced to 5% of the total price of the vehicle

Kerala Budget 2023: What’s costlier?

• Electricity charges have been hiked – Electricity duty for commercial and industrial sectors has been increased to 5%
• Petrol and Diesel hiked by Rs 2 per litre
• Liquor – Rs 20 for each bottle of IMFL having MRP between Rs 500 and Rs 999, Rs 40 per bottle of IMFL having MRP above Rs 1,000
• Cost of acquiring apartments to rise – Stamp duty increased by 2%
• The fair value of land increased by 20%; rent to be based on the fair value of land
• Court fee stamp duty – 1% fee for defamation cases
• Change in one-time cess on new vehicle registrations – Two-wheelers Rs 100 (from Rs 50),
• Light motor vehicles Rs 200 (Rs 100), Medium motor vehicles Rs 300 (Rs 150), Heavy motor vehicles Rs 500 (Rs 250)
• Increase in price of new cars and vehicles in private use – Till Rs 5 lakh – 1% increase, Rs 5 – Rs 15 lakh – 2% increase, Rs 20-30 lakh – 1% increase, above Rs 30 lakh- 1% increase
• Motorcycle tax hike – A 2% additional tax will be levied on motorcycles priced up to Rs 2 lakh

Continuing her campaign for a stringent liquor policy in Madhya Pradesh, BJP leader Uma Bharati, Thursday, tied stray cows outside a liquor shop in the state’s Orchha town as she urged people to shun alcohol and drink milk instead.

The former MP chief minister tied stray cows outside a shop selling Indian-made foreign liquor (IMFL) in Orchha, a town in Niwari district famous for its temples and palaces and raised the slogan Sharab Nahi, Doodh Piyo (drink milk, not liquor).

The senior BJP leader is spearheading an anti-liquor campaign in Madhya Pwhich she has linked to alleged rise in crimes against women in the BJP-ruled state. Bharati urged the Shivraj Chouhan-led regime not to cash in on people’s drinking habit.

On Tuesday, Bharati announced a programme to convert liquor stores into cow shelters, “Madhushala Me Gaushala”, as she claimed that crimes against women in BJP-ruled Madhya Pradesh are the result of liquor consumption.

The BJP leader has put forward the demand for a “controlled” liquor policy in the state and pushed for converting liquor outlets who are in violation of rules, into cow shelters.

The Hindutva leader had on January 29 reached a temple near a liquor store in Ayodhya Nagar trisection of the state capital and announced she will stay there till January 31, awaiting announcement of a new liquor policy by the government.

In June last year, the BJP leader had thrown cow dung at the same liquor shop. In March 2022, she threw a stone at a liquor shop in Bhopal.

Fearing a repeat of last year’s incidents, a salesman of the outlet immediately downed the shutters.

Bharati said she was in part responsible for the prevailing alcohol abuse in the states as she sought votes for the BJP in the 2003 Assembly polls and since then the party is in power in the state, barring 15 months in 2018-2020 when the Congress took the reins.

The former CM had earlier pushed for total prohibition in the state, but has softened her stance on the issue for the past few months and now seeks regularization of alcohol sale in Madhya Pradesh, where Assembly elections are due by the end of the year.

In yet another hit-and-drag case, a speeding car hit a motorcycle and dragged it for more than 3 kilometers in Haryana’s Gurugram. Following that, the car driver fled the spot, leaving his vehicle. The accident took place on Wednesday at around 11:30 pm in Sector 65.

The accident has been captured on camera. The video of the mishap is now going viral on social media, where massive sparks can be seen under the car as it continues to drag the bike, ignoring attempts made by other commuters to stop it.

The motorcycle owner, a bouncer by profession, filed a complaint against the driver. In a complaint, he stated that the Honda City car hit his motorcycle when he was returning home from duty. He said he had a narrow escape as he was standing near his motorcycle at the time of the incident. His two-wheeler got stuck beneath the car.

The bouncer, Monu, said his motorcycle was badly damaged in the incident.

Subhash Boken, the spokesman for Gurugram Police, said the car driver has been arrested on the basis of the motorcyclist’s complaint.

An FIR has been registered against the car driver under sections 279 (rash driving), 336 (act endangering the life or personal safety of others), and 427 (causing damage) of the Indian Penal Code at the Sector 65 police station.

Earlier, a 20-year-old woman was killed after her scooter collided with a Baleno car in Delhi’s Kanjhawala, and was dragged by the car for about 12 kilometers in the early hours of January 1. Her leg was caught in a wheel and she was dragged away by the car while her friend suffered minor injuries.