Chennai: State-run TASMAC has decided to introduce greater transparency in its liquor procurement by scrapping a long-running commission system, according to the report. The company has stopped collecting a fee of Rs 60 per case from suppliers, a move it says will save around Rs 51 crore every month.
TASMAC sells liquor through its retail outlets and procures spirits from 11 distilleries and beer from seven companies. On average, it purchases about 50 lakh cases of spirits and 35 lakh cases of beer each month.
The report says procurement in the previous DMK government was skewed towards three major distilleries said to be backed by party supporters, with about 35 lakh spirit cases and 20 lakh beer cases a month sourced from them. This allegedly led to higher purchases of less-preferred brands and stock remaining unsold for more than two months.
After the change in government, with the TVK administration led by Chief Minister Vijay taking charge, TASMAC has reduced purchases from DMK-linked firms and moved to demand-based procurement across all companies. A TASMAC official quoted in the report said the earlier practice involved suppliers paying Rs 50 per case to the “top level” of the government and Rs 10 per case to the “top level” of the department, totalling Rs 60, which has now been stopped.
The report also notes that procurement patterns had shifted over the years, including a period when purchases were concentrated from a distillery linked to relatives of Sasikala during Jayalalithaa’s tenure, before later changes. TASMAC now says it will calculate demand for each company’s products and procure accordingly, without bias.
