Govt liquor shops sell through midnight

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Sanjay Pinto

Tuesday, September 02, 2008, (Chennai)

It's the place for a midnight swig. Though the official closing time is 11 pm, one Tamilnadu State Marketing Corporation (TASMAC) shop keeps its shutters only half closed for at least the next two hours.

Customers buy their drink and drive late into the night. The irony is that TASMAC shops are run and owned by the state government.

"For one bottle they charge Rs 3/- extra after 11pm," complains one customer. "The local police get a cut. There`s too much police disturbance."

With the number of road accidents in the city involving drunk drivers increasing every year, the administration's laxity is worrying residents. The police, however, deny that rules for TASMAC shops have been relaxed.

Sunil Kumar, Additional Commissioner (Traffic), says: "As far as the police is concerned we look for people driving in a drunken state. We wouldn't know from where they are coming."

Private pubs and discotheques however have to close at 11 pm. Aren't these double standards? That's the question Chennai's party goers are asking.