Tamil Nadu is considering handing over the administration of the state-run TASMAC liquor retail network to private parties, Prohibition and Excise Minister Vignesh said during an interview in Coimbatore, while announcing a statewide overhaul of empty liquor bottle collection and measures to keep shops open during employee protests.
The minister said the government would examine the proposal to privatise TASMAC administration. The statement did not specify whether the review concerns the retail shops, the wider administration, or a potential private operating model, and no timeline or framework for such a change was announced.
The comments came amid continuing disputes involving TASMAC employees. According to the minister, employees had staged five protests in the past six months. He attributed the current problem to instructions allegedly given by the previous administration to collect money from TASMAC workers. The claim was made by the minister during the interview and was not accompanied in the report by further details of the alleged instructions.
The government is also focusing on the return and accounting of empty liquor bottles. Vignesh said a report had been submitted in court stating that TASMAC employees had handled the bottles properly. However, he said the number of bottles returned was below the expected level. The government was questioning the gap between the quantity recorded as received and the money accounted for, describing the empty-bottle issue as the biggest corruption problem in Tamil Nadu.
To address the issue, the state plans to introduce a system under which empty bottles can be handed over at any location in Tamil Nadu. The minister said the arrangement would be implemented within 20 days. The government also plans to purchase 40,048 machines for the process, although the report did not specify the machine type, procurement cost, installation locations or the agency that will operate them.
The proposed bottle-return system would make the collection of packaging waste a state-wide retail administration responsibility rather than leaving it to individual shop-level practices. Its effectiveness will depend on how returns are recorded, how deposits or payments are reconciled, and whether the machines are available and functional across the network. The minister did not provide details of the operating or audit mechanism.
The government has announced several measures for TASMAC shop employees, including a monthly salary of Rs 34,000, weekly holidays, medical insurance and a festival-period benefit of Rs 20,000. Only staff working inside the shops have been instructed to wear uniforms, according to the minister.
The minister also warned that the government would take strict action if employees joined protests. Notices have so far been issued to 960 workers, while four employees accused of asking shops to close have been suspended. The report said an inquiry was under way against those who closed shops. The government plans to appoint additional employees and use replacement staff to keep outlets open.
The minister further said that no liquor sales target had been fixed for the Deepavali festival. The next immediate administrative milestones are the proposed implementation of the bottle-return system within 20 days, the planned procurement of 40,048 machines and the ongoing inquiries into shop closures.
