Wage hike and warning
The Tamil Nadu government has unveiled a significant pay increase for contract workers at state-owned TASMAC liquor shops, nearly doubling salaries for supervisors and assistant salesmen, while issuing a strict warning against overcharging customers. The announcement was made by Prohibition and Excise Minister K Vignesh in the state assembly.
Effective September 1, supervisors will draw ₹33,023 a month, up from ₹17,850 before the first hike and ₹22,313 after an earlier increase in August. Assistant salesmen salaries will rise to ₹28,680, from ₹14,340 before the first hike and ₹17,925 after it. The revision covers TASMAC's 22,877 contractual workers — 6,473 supervisors, 14,379 salesmen and 2,025 assistant salesmen. The increases will cost the state an additional ₹486.90 crore, Vignesh said.
Alongside the wage hike, the minister announced a festival advance of ₹20,000 for all workers and an annual allowance of ₹6,000 for three sets of uniforms. Shops will receive maintenance grants of ₹5,000 in corporations, ₹4,000 in municipalities and ₹3,000 elsewhere. Workers will also get a weekly day off, two days of casual leave a month and an eight-hour duty schedule.
Vignesh said the raises were part of an effort to end a practice of overcharging customers above the maximum retail price that has persisted for nearly 23 years. "The overcharging started with ₹2 a bottle when workers drew a salary of ₹2,000. Successive govts did not make any effort to curb the practice. Instead, they were encouraged to fleece buyers," he told the assembly.
He said TASMAC had previously only fined workers for overcharging up to ₹9 a bottle. Going forward, he warned, collecting even ₹1 above MRP will result in suspension for up to three months, and a second offense will mean dismissal.
Suspensions and enforcement
The announcement follows the suspension of more than 60 TASMAC employees in a single day over allegations of demanding extra money from customers, as reported by India Today. The action was initiated across Chennai, Madurai, Salem, Trichy and Coimbatore, amid complaints that customers are being asked to pay an additional Rs 10 or Rs 20 per bottle at TASMAC outlets.
Vignesh said the extra Rs 10 is not a government charge, tracing the practice back to when TASMAC shop employees earned only around Rs 2,000 a month. According to the minister, the amount collected per bottle gradually increased to Rs 5 and eventually Rs 10, with the money being used towards basic shop expenses such as electricity bills, rent and maintenance.
Vignesh blamed the previous DMK government for failing to adequately fund these expenses or revise the salaries of TASMAC employees. "The previous DMK regime has not taken any steps to revise salaries of TASMAC employees or even fund regular upkeep of the outlets. It was the TVK government led by Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay which increased the salaries and is taking steps to weed out corruption," he told the Assembly.
The government has now moved against employees accused of continuing the practice despite steps to improve their salaries and working conditions.
Assembly clash
The issue triggered a political clash in the Tamil Nadu Assembly, with the ruling side and the Opposition trading accusations of corruption.
Former DMK minister K N Nehru challenged the government's argument during the debate, questioning how the DMK could be blamed for the practice when the minister had himself acknowledged that customers had been charged an additional Rs 10 per bottle over the years.
Law Minister R Nirmal Kumar accused the Opposition of overlooking corruption that the government was attempting to investigate. He referred to legal documents and court records while raising allegations of tender irregularities, including cases in which people had allegedly manipulated the system to operate multiple retail liquor outlets.
Public Works and Sports Development Minister Aadhav Arjuna alleged corruption in certain sectors during the previous DMK government. "There are two types of corruption - one related to mines and sand extraction which can be black or white money, and another involving film industry and TASMAC liquor," he said. The remark prompted DMK members to rise in protest. Arjuna immediately clarified that he had not specifically named anyone.
The confrontation eventually led to a DMK walkout from the Assembly. Former ministers K N Nehru and V Senthil Balaji said DMK members had sought permission from the Speaker to respond to and clarify the allegations levelled against the party, but were denied permission. The Opposition then walked out in protest.
Broader reforms
Vignesh acknowledged that reforming TASMAC was a complicated task because several practices had become entrenched over the past two decades. He said the government was working on systemic reforms, including better compensation for staff, official funding for shop operations and changes aimed at bringing Tamil Nadu's liquor administration in line with modern standards followed in other states.
The minister also outlined several related measures, including an increase in the rehabilitation fund for those reformed, from ₹50,000 to ₹1 lakh, and an increase in the fund for awareness campaigns on alcohol and drugs from ₹5 crore to ₹10 crore. A social media awareness campaign was allocated ₹2 crore, and a methanol control policy has been implemented to eliminate illicit liquor in the state.