MADURAI: The Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court on Wednesday suggested making ‘alcohol license’ mandatory for purchasing liquor in Tamil Nadu. It told the union government to consider instructing the state government and police to introduce a licensing system for sale, purchase and consumption of Indian Made Foreign Liquor (IMFL) in the state.
A Bench of justices R Mahadevan and J Sathya Narayana Prasad, which passed the order, further directed the state government to contemplate reducing the operating hours of TASMAC retail outlets from 2 pm to 8 pm, instead of 12 pm to 10 pm. It wanted the state government to also consider printing of labels, price list and contact details (for registering complaints) in Tamil.
Expressing concern over how school and college students are falling prey to alcohol addiction, the judges directed the state government to ensure that liquor is not sold to persons aged below 21 years. The labelling requirements under the Food Safety and Standards (Alcoholic Beverages) Regulations, 2018, the Food Safety and Standards (Packaging and Labelling) Regulations, 2011 and other regulations relating to management and administration of staff should be strictly complied with, the judges added.