Alcohol drinkers may get a big shock! Bottle may become costlier by 10 to 50 rupees, preparations to increase here

Tamil Nadu Liquor Price Hike: In a move to end the long-standing practice of charging customers ₹10 more than the maximum retail price (MRP) for every bottle at state-owned liquor shops, the Tamil Nadu government on Tuesday announced a 25 per cent hike in the salaries of state-run Tamil Nadu State Marketing Corporation (TASMAC) employees and extension of Employees’ State Insurance (ESI) benefits to them.

Action against those charging more money

The aim of this step is to eliminate the old system of illegal recovery while improving the welfare of employees. Prohibition and Excise Minister Vignesh said that the government will also take strict action against overcharging and any staff found overcharging will be suspended. He also announced that anyone under the age of 21 who entered the bar would have their license revoked.

The minister said, “My employees and their well-being are important to me. The public is equally important, the burden of this increase in salaries cannot be put on them.” He clarified that there will be no increase in liquor prices due to increase in salaries.

The ruling party ‘Tamilaga Vetri Kazhagam’ (TVK) has repeatedly alleged that during the tenure of the previous DMK government, ₹10 charged more than the MRP was sent to the ‘party fund’ and customers were forced to pay more than the fixed price. DMK has denied these allegations.

Elaborating on the scope of the scam, Vignesh had earlier claimed that around one crore liquor bottles were sold every day in 2021-22. He alleged that the collection of additional ₹10 per bottle amounts to ₹10 crore per day, ₹300 crore monthly and approximately ₹3,600 crore annually.

He said, “Employees were paid very low salaries and had to face stigma from the people.” He raised questions as to why the previous DMK government did not stop this trend even though it was reportedly going on for years.

During the tenure of the DMK government, the then Excise Minister Senthil Balaji had said that whenever complaints of charging extra money came to light, action was taken against the guilty employees.

This strict action is part of the larger anti-corruption agenda of the TVK government. The government has already claimed to put a stop to alleged irregularities in public procurement. He has accused the previous government of increasing the cost of the tender by 40 percent in order to extract funds for the party. The government says that by eliminating such practices, there has been a lot of savings in the state exchequer.

The issue of corruption has also been raised in the Assembly. Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay recently alleged that corruption has taken place under the guise of party funds. Opposition leader Udhayanidhi Stalin objected to this and challenged him to prove the allegations with evidence.

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