The Tamil Nadu government has decided to shut down 500 outlets of the Tamil Nadu State Marketing Corporation (TASMAC) with effect from Thursday, June 22. The TASMACs are authorised outlets in Tamil Nadu that sell alcoholic beverages, and the current decision to close some of them down is part of an announcement made by the government on March 31, earlier this year. According to a press release dated June 21, 500 out of the total 5329 outlets will be shut in various parts of the state.
The Tamil Nadu Prohibition and Excise Department has reportedly identified 500 suitable TASMAC outlets across the state that are located very near to religious sites and educational institutions, and those that generate lower income. The department officials have also identified shops that are being objected to by the public for a long period and shops that are parties to court litigations.
According to the press release,138 shops will be closed in the Chennai region which includes Kancheepuram and Tiruvallur districts. 78 shops are to be closed in the Coimbatore region which comprises Coimbatore, Tiruppur, Erode, The Nilgiris, and Karur districts. There are 933 TASMAC outlets functioning in this region. In the Madurai region, which comprises Madurai, Dindigul, Sivaganga, Ramnathapuram, Virudhunagar, Tirunelveli, Thoothukudi, Kanyakumari, and Theni, 125 shops will be closed out of the total 1345 shops. 59 shops will be closed in the Salem region, while the Trichy region will shut down 100 TASMAC outlets.
The Prohibition department has instructed district managers to ensure that the closure of the TASMACs does not lead to the sales of spurious liquor. The press release mentioned that a separate order will be issued regarding the redeployment of employees currently working in the 500 shops that are to be closed. A monitoring officer is to be appointed to monitor the available stock at these 500 outlets and ensure that they are transferred to godowns. TASMAC employees are advised to hand over the furniture, cash chest box, documents, billing machines, bottle coolers, and PoS machine to the concerned district manager.
While closing the shops, the assistant managers of the shops are required to procure a certificate from the internal auditor after physical verification. The department has also warned that it would take appropriate disciplinary action if any stock shortage or misappropriation is found during the internal audit.