Jayalalithaa shuts 500 liquor shops -Governance Now

Jayalalithaa shuts 500 liquor shops

Liquor outlets in Tamil Nadu will now remain from noon to 10 pm

Shivani Chaturvedi | May 23, 2016 | Chennai

#Jayalalithaa #liquor outlets shut #prohibition #alcohol #election promise

J Jayalalithaa began her second term as the chief minister of Tamil Nadu on Monday by announcing closure of 500 Tamil Nadu State Marketing Corporation (TASMAC) liquor shops.

The chief minister also ordered that liquor outlets can be open only from 12 pm to 10 pm.

As Jayalalithaa moved towards implementing her election manifesto, political experts spoke of the challenges she may face.

Political analyst and medical practitioner and Dr Sumanth Raman says, “How is she going to make up the loss of revenue. Liquor sales brings in almost Rs 30,000 crore to the state.”

Introducing rehabilitation centres in the state will also be required, he adds.

Political commentator BR Haran concurs. “At the end of the previous tenure, the government had liability of Rs. 4 lakh crores. The state needs revenue. Without having strong alternative as the source of revenue for the state, she might face a challenge,” he says.

Professor S Janakarajan, an economist at Madras Institute of Development Studies, feels, “It is going to take a couple years to bring prohibition in the state. She needs to do a lot of ground work to bring in prohibition as there might be hooch tragedies. In this state, people have been drinking since 1967. It will just add burden to the state.”

“Also, the state’s loss of revenue has to be looked into when prohibition is introduced. Jayalalithaa needs to take a bold decision to levy some new taxes, such as to start with tax on diesel car vehicles,” he adds.

Comments

Other News

Citizens of the Bay: Why BIMSTEC matters now

The international order is drifting into a dangerous grey zone as the very powers that built today`s multilateral system begin to chip away at it. The United States has increasingly walked away from global rules and forums when they no longer suit its interests, while China has rushed to fill the vacuum on

PM salutes armed forces on one year of Operation Sindoor

Prime minister Narendra Modi on Thursday saluted the courage, precision and resolve of the armed forces on the completion of one year of Operation Sindoor. The PM said that the armed forces had given a fitting response to those who dared to attack innocent Indians at Pahalgam.&

Supreme Court judge strength to go up by four to 37

The strength of the Supreme Court is set to go up from 33 judges to 37 judges, paving the way for a more efficient and speedier justice. The Union Cabinet on Tuesday approved the proposal for introducing The Supreme Court (Number of Judges) Amendment Bill, 2026 in Parliament to amend The Sup

BJP set to capture West Bengal

The political map of the country is set to be redrawn with the BJP set to win the West Bengal assembly elections, apart from Assam and the union territory of Puducherry. In Kerala, meanwhile, the Congress-led UDF is set to regain power. The filmstar Vijay-led TVK has emerged as the front-runner in Tamil Na

Beyond LPG: Is PNG ready for India’s next cooking fuel transition?

India, the second-largest importer and consumer of LPG after China, faces growing pressure due to supply constraints. Most of India`s LPG imports transit through the Strait of Hormuz, a focal point of global turmoil. Given that LPG forms the backbone of household kitchens and the restaurant industry, any s

Maharashtra adopts hybrid model for Census 2026 data collection

The government has initiated preparations for Census 2026 in Maharashtra, introducing a hybrid approach that combines optional self-enumeration with comprehensive door-to-door data collection to ensure complete coverage across the state. According to senior officials, the Self-