CHENNAI: The state has released the list of 717 Tasmac liquor outlets that have been closed. The list contains details such as shop number, district, region and the total number of outlets closed in each area.
The move follows backlash from certain sections after Prohibition and Excise Minister K Vignesh told the press that the full list of the closed outlets “was available on social media”.
He was responding to questions on the opposition parties’ claims that several of the outlets declared closed were still functioning. The opposition had accused the government of refusing to disclose details of the closed outlets under the Right to Information Act.
As per the list, the Madurai region recorded the highest number of closures with 290 outlets. These include 63 shops in Thoothukudi, 42 in Virudhunagar, 39 in Madurai South, 33 in Tirunelveli, 29 in Ramanathapuram, and 25 in Dindigul.
Egmore outlet gets bottle deposit machine
As part of a pilot project, Tasmac on Monday introduced a bottle deposit machine at a liquor outlet in Egmore, Chennai, to collect empty liquor bottles from consumers. Based on the performance of the pilot project, Tasmac plans to expand the initiative to other outlets across the state. TNIE had carried a detailed report on the proposed scheme on Saturday.