TASMAC retail outlets remain State-run as govt revises rules for private bars

CHENNAI: The Tamil Nadu government has revised the rules governing retail liquor shops and bars operated by the Tamil Nadu State Marketing Corporation (TASMAC), tightening provisions on authorisation, inspections and regulatory compliance while retaining the existing arrangement under which private parties can operate bars through tenders.

The amendments to the Tamil Nadu Liquor Retail Vending (in Shops and Bars) Rules, 2003, were notified through Government Order issued by the Home, Prohibition and Excise Department on October 23. The notification does not provide for transferring the operation of TASMAC’s retail liquor outlets to private players.

Private parties were already permitted to run bars through a tender process under the earlier rules. The latest amendments revise the authorisation framework, providing for district-level approvals and separate authorisations for individual retail shops and bars. TASMAC will collect the tender amount, remit it to the government by the 25th of the following month and retain one per cent as agency commission.

The provision allowing bars to operate either adjoining a TASMAC outlet or within 100 metres of it, as well as the minimum plinth area requirement of 20 square metres, had been introduced through an earlier amendment in July.

The latest notification also prescribes a separate inspection framework for bars, mandates electronic maintenance of daily transaction records and requires drinking water and washbasin facilities. It makes it mandatory to display signboards in Tamil, including authorisation details and health warnings in Tamil and English.

Both shops and bars can function only between noon and 10 pm. The rules prohibit the sale of liquor to persons below 21 years and bar their entry into drinking establishments or employment in shops and bars.

The amendments also specify dry days, including Thiruvalluvar Day, Gandhi Jayanthi, May Day, Independence Day and Republic Day, besides other days notified by the government.