The story so far: Charging an extra ₹10 over the maximum retail price (MRP) of liquor bottles has long been a contentious practice at the Tamil Nadu State Marketing Corporation (Tasmac) outlets. Successive governments have issued instructions prohibiting the practice, but it has persisted, with shop employees claiming they used the money to meet expenses such as bottle breakages, internet charges and other miscellaneous costs. The issue came under sharp scrutiny after the TVK-led coalition assumed office, prompting the government to issue strict guidelines and suspend employees found collecting money over and above the MRP.

In a significant shift, Tasmac last week announced a ₹10 increase in the MRP of all liquor variants from November 1, 2026, by introducing an environment cess, with consumers eligible for a ₹10 refund upon returning empty bottles. They called this “buyback” scheme. However, the rollout ran into trouble on the very first day, with several outlets shutting without prior notice. Employees cited technical glitches in point-of-sale (POS) machines and a lack of space to store returned bottles, raising questions about the preparedness of the corporation to implement the new system.