Employees of Tamil Nadu State Marketing Corporation Limited, popular by its acronym TASMAC, are selling liquor above the maximum retail price (MRP) and are charging an extra amount of ₹15- ₹50 depending on the product purchased.
An analyst who tracks the liquor industry in Tamil Nadu points out that considering there are 6,200 retail vending shops across the State, the profits made through selling liquor above MRP is anywhere between ₹1.2 lakh to ₹1.5 lakh per day.
Eight TASMAC outlets which The Hindu visited admitted that they charge ₹10 and above the MRP.
“In case of damage at outlets, and to bottles, the money is deducted from the salaries of the employees of the outlet. So this is one way of compensating what is taken away from us.” At an outlet, near the Express Avenue Mall, for a half bottle of brandy which had a price tag of ₹280, a customer was charged ₹295.
With the New Year nearing, residents are eager to replenish their stocks of alcohol, and fear that they might be charged more.
The manager at an outlet on Anna Salai said, “We charge above the MRP only from those who buy premium products. We can’t ask for ₹10 extra from someone who is buying liquor below ₹100. And also people who walk in here do not really mind even if we charge extra. They just pay and walk out,” he added. Workers at this outlet claim that they easily make ₹800-₹1,000 per day through this mode.
At a TASMAC outlet in Triplicane, the manager said that this was happening because of cash payments. “There are no bills given unless the customer insists for one and there are no swiping machines these days,” he said. Only the 26 mall shops across the state have POS machines.
When contacted, a senior TASMAC official, said, “Liquor should not be sold above MRP. We have a flying squad that does routine checks at outlets throughout the year. We also have a toll free line (18004252015) where consumers can complain. There is also a direct line 044-28542303. If it comes to our notice, we will take action,” he added.
To a question on why TASMAC, the cash cow of the State, did not have POS machines at its outlets, the official said, “We are talking to banks to install these machines. The challenge is there is a hefty transaction charge and we are negotiating on this.”
TASMAC sells liquor worth ₹67-70 crore per day and sales has been growing 12-15 per cent year on year. TASMAC has 6,200 retail vending shops and 3,139 of them have attached bar.
