The Sweet Grapes

One is not sure whether it is a good or bad news. A new Indian Grape Processing Board is set to come into existence in Pune as the central government has approved the proposal. The move is expected to give boost to the wine industry in Maharashtra. According to figures provided by government, the Indian wine industry is worth Rs 275 crores and growing at 25 –30% annually. Maharashtra is the No. 1 state in industry while Nashik is called the Wine Capital of India.

The Board will be an autonomous body facilitated by the Government of India and managed by the industry representatives. An outlay of Rs 5.39 crores has been sanctioned for the establishment of the Board. Pune is the principal grape growing area in the country. The wine industry in Maharashtra leads in the country. According to figures available with Maharashtra government, out of 61 wine industries in India, 58 are from the state. Two industries are located in Karnataka while Andhra has only one. Among these 58 industries, 30 are located in Nashik district while 11 are in Pune. Rest are in Sangli, Solpaur, Buldhana and Usmanabad.

Board is expected to give a new boost to the Indian wine industry, by fostering sustainable development through Research and Development, Extension, Quality control and market research. Just last month, I have given a story of a move by National Horticulture Board to get Geographical Indication for the wine grown in the area of Nashik and Pune. The wine made from grapes cultivated in this area will be called Sahyadri Wine.

However, currently the situation is not ripe with regard to wine industry. As an effect of recession and terror attacks, the demand has plummeted and stocks are piling up.

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Wine production in India (upto Sept. 2008): Two crores 25 lakh litre
Wine production in Maharashtra (upto Sept. 2008) : Two Crores 11 lakh litre
Wine industries in India : 61
Wine industries in Maharashtra : 58
Area under cultivation of grapes (India) : 60,000 Hectares
Area under cultivation of grapes (Maha.): 35,236 Hectares

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Maharashtra government announced its wine policy in October 2001. Thereafter, the industry was given heavy encouragement in the state. Many major steps were taken like:

• To set up wine parks in the state.
• To issue licenses for the wineries at district level.
• To include wineries in the food processing industry sector and removing from the list of country made and foreign made liquor.
• To bring the excise duty on wine from 100 percent to 0 percent.

It has faced wrath for opponents also but it did not deter the government from going ahead. Still, the industry has a long way to go as 98 percent of grapes produced in India used for the eating while in a country like France, 99 of grapes go into wine making.
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