MAYILADUTHURAI: One day after cases were filed against staff of three Tasmac outlets over allegations of overcharging in Mayiladuthurai district, 42 outlets were closed till Tuesday afternoon amid a protest by employees.
The outlets were only opened at 2 pm after members of the Joint Action Committee of Tasmac Employees filed a petition at the collectorate outlining a set of demands, including appointment of adequate staff at retail outlets, separate workers to collect bottles, fixed wages for unloading liquor cartons, night security at shops in isolated areas and Wi-Fi facility.
Police sources said that Palaiyur and Sirkazhi police received complaints on Monday from the public that staff at local Tasmac outlets were charging an extra `10 per bottle. Subsequently, police probed the matter and booked supervisor M Kamaraj and salesman V Babu of an outlet in Sattanathapuram in Sirkazhi, and temporary workers of two other outlets in Palaiyur, under sections 11 and 24 of the TN Prohibition (Amendment) Act.
Sources from the employees’ committee said that the staff members, under the bottle buy-back scheme, collect an additional `10 per liquor bottle at the time of purchase, and customers can return the empty bottle to the same shop after consumption to receive a refund of the amount. However, SP G Stalin said that staff members who were booked were all found to be collecting `20 extra per bottle above MRP.
