RANIPET: As Tasmac employees across the State went on strike on Friday, scores of customers in Ranipet waited for hours outside liquor outlets, some staying back in the hope that the shops would reopen, highlighting the lengths to which some were willing to go to buy liquor.
More than 100 employees in Ranipet staged a protest at the Tasmac manager’s office, demanding that the scheme to collect empty liquor bottles be scrapped. The protest was organised by the Federation of United Tasmac Trade Unions.
The employees had warned that they would shut all 76 outlets in Ranipet district if the management insisted on continuing the bottle collection scheme. After talks with officials failed to reach an amicable settlement, the employees shut the outlets.
The closure left customers waiting outside the shops for several hours. Some eventually returned home after finding that the outlets remained closed, while others continued to wait, hoping they would reopen.
The employees also demanded that Tasmac bear additional expenses if liquor is to be sold at the maximum retail price and sought job security for staff.
Under the existing system, empty liquor bottles sold through Tasmac outlets are collected upon return.