Andhra Pradesh makes Aadhaar a must for buying liquor, cuts off Tamil Nadu tipplers

CHENNAI: Tipplers from Tamil Nadu can't run across the border to buy liquor as the Andhra Pradesh government has said Aadhaar card, which specifies the individual's address, is a must to buy alcohol in the state. The development comes in the wake of reports of Covid-19 cases in Andhra Pradesh linked to the Koyambedu cluster in Tamil Nadu. The neighbouring state has also closed all liquor outlets on bordering villages that attract the maximum crowd from Tamil Nadu.
An employee of a liquor outlet in Andhra Pradesh said the number of customers from Tamil Nadu had dropped on Wednesday after Aadhaar card was made mandatory for purchase. "Individuals must produce their Aadhaar card in person when buying liquor. We can sell liquor only after verifying the Aadhaar card, wherein the customer should be a resident within our taluk," a worker with a wine shop at Puttur taluk of Chittoor district said. This was done to discourage people from TN's border districts travelling to Andhra Pradesh to purchase liquor.
With Tasmac outlets shut since Saturday, villagers in Tiruvallur district rushed to Andhra Pradesh to buy liquor. Kanakanarsa Reddy, revenue divisional officer of Tirupati, told TOI that the rule over producing Aadhaar Cards came into effect from Monday. Sathyavedu, Nagalapuram and Pichatur taluks which share borders with Tamil Nadu, fall under Reddy's jurisdiction. A local at Nagari town in Andhra Pradesh said four wine shops along the town border, shared with Tiruttani in Tiruvallur district, were shut as people from Tamil Nadu began thronging the outlet when Tasmac outlets were closed.
The government may have adopted such measures after the spurt in Covid-19 cases in Rayalaseema region of Andhra Pradesh in recent weeks was found to have links to the Koyambedu wholesale market at Chennai, which is frequented by farmers and traders largely from Chittoor and Nellore districts of Andhra Pradesh.