The Tamil Nadu State Marketing Corporation (TASMAC) has witnessed a 10-15 per cent drop in sales across Tamil Nadu after scrapping of the Rs. 500 and Rs. 1,000 notes.
R. Kirlosh Kumar, Managing Director of TASMAC, told The Hindu that a circular was issued to all the shops across the State instructing them not to accept these notes. When asked for sales data, Mr. Kumar said, “It will be available tomorrow.”
Analysts who track the industry indicated that this could lead to a loss of revenue of Rs. 10-15 crore a day. TASMAC, the cash cow of Tamil Nadu, sells liquor worth Rs. 67-70 crore per day through its outlets. The data is as of 6 pm on Wednesday. Liquor industry experts say the sales peak after 7 pm.
D. Dhanasekaran, general secretary of the AITUC-affiliated Tamil Nadu TASMAC Employees’ Union, said that an SMS was sent to supervisors and sales mangers of all 6,195 shops across the State regarding this. According to him, sales have dropped drastically in many parts of the State.
Corroborating the claim, the supervisor of a TASMAC outlet in Guindy said that sales had dropped by 18 per cent. “We refused to accept the notes when tipplers came in. We could not give change to even those who walked in with Rs. 100 notes after the first three hours of business. The footfalls were also minimal at our outlet,” he added.
Ditto was the response of managers and supervisors of shops in Anna Nagar, Chepauk, Anna Salai, Tambaram and Ambattur. On an average, all these shops saw a 8-10 per cent dip in sales till 6 pm on Wednesday.
Shops in Koyambedu and T. Nagar, which are close to markets, saw a 20 per cent slump in sales. “The customers who come here are daily-wage workers. They were cautious about drinking today. Some had an argument at the counter when we refused to accept the Rs. 500 notes,” said the sales manager of an outlet in T. Nagar.
About 70 lakh people consume liquor at TASMAC outlets in the State every day.
