Ahead of Diwali, Tamil Nadu government decides to increase liquor prices

Only the government-owned TASMAC is authorised to sell liquor in Tamil Nadu. Authorities say the move will add Rs 5,320 crore to the state's coffers.

Pramod Madhav  | Edited by Ganesh Kumar Radha Udayakumar
Chennai, October 11, 2017 | UPDATED 17:09 IST
TASMAC store (Photo: Twitter/@vasudevan_k)TASMAC store (Photo: Twitter/@vasudevan_k)

Highlights

  • 1
    Beer to cost Rs 10 extra
  • 2
    "Hot" liquor to cost Rs 12 more
  • 3
    DMK's Stalin slammed the govt over the move

The Tamil Nadu government decided to increase liquor prices at a Cabinet meeting held on Wednesday, in a move that authorities say will add Rs 5,320 crore to the state's coffers.

Beer will reportedly cost an extra Rs 10, and "hot" liquor, an extra Rs 12.

Only the government-owned TASMAC is authorised to sell liquor in Tamil Nadu. In 2015-2016, the company earned Rs 25,000 crore in revenue.

Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) deputy chief MK Stalin pointed out a contradiction in the government's position on liquor sales.

"First they claimed to implement Prohibition step-by-step. Now they have gone ahead and increased the price of liquor", he said.

Stalin asked how the government could promise Prohibition if it wants to generate revenue from liquor sales. He wasn't alone.

In the run-up to the 2016 Assembly elections, most parties, including the AIADMK, pledged to enact a liquor ban in Tamil Nadu.

An activist who was interviewed for an article published in May this year said Tamil Nadu had become a "state of drunkards," which creates "orphans" and "widows."

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