CHENNAI: Tipplers in Tamil Nadu consumed 1.69 lakh cases of hard liquor worth over Rs 100 crore on January 1 this year. However, liquor sales were less compared to the previous year’s New Year day.
Sources in the Tamil Nadu State Marketing Corporation (Tasmac), which is the monopoly agency in selling liquor in the state, said the sale of hard liquor this time was down by 3.9%, compared to last year, when 1.76 lakh cases were sold.
The collection crossed Rs 100 crore but the final figures have yet to be tabulated, Tasmac sources said.
Tiruvallur east division recorded the maximum number of sales -- as many as 8,378 cases were sold on January one, which is 6.41% more compared to the previous year.
In the Chennai (central) division, liquor sales increased by only 0.4%. Only 3,662 cases of hard liquor were sold, compared to 3,656 cases in the previous year.
The lowest January 1 sales were reported in Nagapattinam district. Last year, the district sold 3,066 hard liquor cases compared to just 2,201 cases this year, a fall of 28.69%.
Even beer sales, which stood at 93,833 cases last year, were low, with only 90,109 cases sold on January 1. "Beer sales also reduced by about 4%," he said.
The Tasmac official further said that the sales were down since the New Year came in the middle of the week. "Moreover, delta districts were hit hard by rains, affecting the sales,” he added.