Chennai, June 10(BPNS)

In a bid to boost the revenue of the state which is reeling under acute fiscal deficit is trying to open standalone bars in the state after shutting down the bars attached with the TASMAC liquor shops. The government will have to allow special liquor license to open such shops.

Tamil Nadu already have several private bars functioning throughout the state but attached with the hotel rooms as per the Tamil Nadu liquor license rules.  It may be noted that the government of Tamil Nadu gets an annual revenue of Rs 440 crore from private bars attached to TASMAC outlets.

A senior officer with TASMAC told BPNS on conditions of anonymity that the state government had brought forward this proposal during the regime of the previous AIADMK government but the proposal did not take off owing to several reasons.

Trade union leader and state president of Tasmac Employees Union affiliated to the AITUC, N Periyaswami while speaking to BPNS said, “ We have been demanding for the past several years that the state government shut down all TASMAC bars attached to liquor outlets and allow standalone bars. Several bars attached to TASMAC outlets have become hubs of various other violations and getting away owing to the political clout of the people running these outlets.”

Swadeshi Jagaran Manch Tamil Nadu state joint secretary, Mahesh Krisnhamoorty has also come out against the government move to allow Standalone private bars. While speaking to BPNS the SJM leader said, “The private standalone bars would create law and order problems in the state. SJM has always been against promoting liquor and now the DMK government is planning a free flow of liquor which would lead to major anarchy in the state destroying the lives of several people. Government of Tamil Nadu must come out against this.”