Bangalore is the third largest market for wine in India after Mumbai and Delhi. And to make the most of it, Bangalore's neighbourhood is soon to have two wine parks, says Minister for Horticulture, Umesh Katti. The wine parks are to be established at Chickaballapur and Bijapur with the aim of increasing the area under grape cultivation and producing good wine.

Addressing the media in Bangalore, Mr. Katti said the parks would be established on public-private partnership. Seven licenses would be issued to set up wineries at the wine park in Bijapur. The grape-growing districts of Bangalore Rural and Bangalore Urban and Kolar have been named “Nandi Valley,” while Bijapur, Bagalkot and Belgaum districts have been named “Krishna Valley.”

More of the good news is that the Karnataka Government has liberalised the licensing system to attract investors to the wine parks, particularly from Maharashtra. The licence fee has been fixed at Rs. 1,000. Those who want to set up wineries can obtain a licence by applying to the Deputy Commissioner’s office. Licences will be issued within 30 days of submission of the application, he said.