Liquor sales through TASMAC in Tamil Nadu to touch Rs 29,672 crore in 2015-16

TASMAC is one of the major source for State's revenue

Liquor sales of Tamil Nadu State Marketing Corporation (Tasmac), a company owned by the Tamil Nadu government with exclusive privilege of conducting wholesale and retail vending of alcoholic beverages in the state, are expected to touch Rs 26,188 crore during the current financial year, and reach Rs 29,672 crore in 2015-16.

In 2005-06, the turnover of Tasmac stood at Rs 7,335 crore.

K Shanmugam, principal secretary (finance), Tamil Nadu government, said of the Tasmac’s estimated revenues of around Rs 26,188 crore in 2014-15, the commercial tax component was expected to be Rs 19,081 crore and excise duty would be Rs 6,376 crore.

For 2015-16, Tasmac sales would increase to Rs 29,672 crore, of which Rs 22,375 crore is expected to be from commercial tax and Rs 7,296 crore from excise duty, he added.

In 1983, Tamil Nadu formed two corporations – Tamil Nadu Spirit Corporation to manufacture liquor and Tasmac to exclusively market it. In November 2003, the then chief minister J Jayalalithaa announced that the government, through Tasmac, would take over private retail sales of alcohol in the state.