TN police specifies timings based on age as TASMAC gears up to resume sales

As the government of Tamil Nadu gears up to reopen liquor shops, tipplers in the state shall now be prepared to buy their stock amid tight security and precautionary measures.

Days after the governments of Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Karnataka announced that liquor stores can resume business which was hitherto suspended due to the COVID-19 lockdown, Tamil Nadu announced that liquor stores across the state, except those in containment zones, will be reopened for business on May 7.

Tamil Nadu enjoys monopoly over liquor sales through the Tamil Nadu State Marketing Corporation (TASMAC), which is also a major revenue source for the state exchequer. A day after this announcement, the Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC) issued a notice stating that TASMAC stores that fall under its limits shall not be opened.

On Tuesday, a meeting between the police and the state government took place, in which the following guidelines were laid down by the police for the resumption of liquor sales in the state:

1. Every TASMAC outlet will have two police constables and two home guards or volunteers on watch. 
2. Barricades will be put up and adequate physical distancing shall be maintained. 
3. Flying squads of policemen shall monitor the city/town and shall have a public address system in place. 
4. Alcohol shall be sold to customers at specific timings according to their age group: If a customer is aged above 50, they can buy liquor from 10 am to 1 pm. If the customer is aged between 40 and 50 years, they can purchase alcohol between 1 pm and 3 pm and for customers aged below 40, alcohol can be sold from 3 pm to 5 pm. 
5. TASMAC outlets of other districts like Chengalpattu, Kancheepuram and Tiruvallur, which are close to GCC limits will remain shut. 

The state government has increased the excise duty on Indian Made Foreign Liquor (IMFL) in the state by 15%. This will result in an increase in the prices of alcohol in TASMAC outlets by at least Rs 10 per unit.

Meanwhile, Opposition leaders in Tamil Nadu, including DMK chief MK Stalin and AMMK chief TTV Dhinakaran, have slammed the decision to reopen TASMAC outlets amid COVID-19 crisis. While TTV Dhinakaran pointed out that in 2016, then Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa had promised total prohibition in Tamil Nadu in a phased manner, DMK’s MK Stalin said that no government with expertise and concern for the welfare of its people would take a decision that would lead to crowding and the spread of the disease.

DMK’s Rajya Sabha MP Kanimozhi also expressed her strong opposition to the decision to reopen liquor shops. She said that the state government has not taken steps to get funds due to it from the Centre and instead, is trying to get money from the poor, by reopening TASMAC shops.

“The government has not recognised the possibility of an increase in domestic violence incidents due to reopening of TASMAC. Hence the government must rescind the order issued to reopen TASMAC,” she said in a series of tweets.

Political parties like the Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK) had called for people to peacefully protest by standing in front of their homes for half-an-hour on Wednesday and chant slogans against the reopening of liquor stores in the state.

Meanwhile, the Madras High Court has asked if alcohol can be sold online in Tamil Nadu and has sought an answer from the government.