Plea for closure of Tasmac shop

June 24, 2016 12:00 am | Updated October 18, 2016 02:10 pm IST - Sivaganga:

Residents of Thirukoshtiyur, one of the 108 Divya Desams of the Vaishnavites, and the authorities of historic Sowmiya Narayana Perumal Temple have expressed disappointment that a Tasmac shop located in South Car Street did not figure in the 43 liquor shops closed recently.

When the government announced closure of 43 shops – the highest number for a district – when it closed 500 shops across the State in the first phase of imposing prohibition, the villagers had high hopes that their long-pending demand for closure of this liquor outlet would be met. However, they were disappointed when they learnt that the shop, which posed nuisance to lakhs of devotees who visited the temple for various festivals throughout the year, did not figure in the list, forcing them to make fresh representation to the district administration, demanding the closure of the shop. The villagers and the temple authorities have been fighting for the closure of the shop for nearly five years. “This shop should have figured on top of the list of 43 shops but it continues to make roaring business,” Kathir Narayanan, a local businessman, told The Hindu . He said 15 to 20 lakh people visited the temple during the famous ‘Theppa Thiruvizha’ every year and it was painful that they rubbed shoulders with tipplers when they walked around the temple, glorified by the Azhawars, he said.

As the shop was centrally located, people from neighbouring villages patronised it, making it generate more revenue. This could be the only shop located in a temple Car street, he said. K. Chidambaram, union councillor, Sudhir Narayanan and Sri Maha Swamini Peetham founder trustee were among the signatories to the petition which was presented to Collector S. Malarvizhi.

Residents express disappointment that it did not figure in the 43 liquor shops closed in the district

0 / 0
Sign in to unlock member-only benefits!
  • Access 10 free stories every month
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign-up/manage your newsletter subscriptions with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early access to discounts & offers on our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.

We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.