Chennai, Aug 23 (PTI) The Tamil Nadu government has ordered strict quality testing across all distilleries in the state to ensure alcohol content complies with prescribed standards, following public concern over the temporary ban and quick clearance of products from a private manufacturer.
The Tamil Nadu State Marketing Corporation (TASMAC), the monopoly agency in selling liquor across the State, procures beer from seven companies and spirits from 11 manufacturers.
Following directives from the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), TASMAC had on August 13 banned the sale of 11 liquor variants produced by ‘Enrica Enterprises’.
However, the Prohibition and Excise office recommended lifting the ban the very next day, advising TASMAC to resume sales.
This swift revocation raised suspicions, prompting liquor consumers and TASMAC employees to demand strict quality assurance for all beverages sold through the network.
Clarifying the procedure, a senior TASMAC official on Sunday stated that once liquor is manufactured at distilleries, samples are collected and sent to the central government Laboratory in Guindy, Chennai.
“Bottling and dispatch for sale only occur after Prohibition and Excise officials verify quality based on the test certificates issued by the central lab,” the official explained and pointed out, “in addition, TASMAC officials randomly pick bottles from retail outlets to send them for lab testing to ensure quality”.
The official added that following the Enrica controversy, instructions have been issued to officials to conduct comprehensive quality checks across all distilleries to confirm that alcohol levels strictly adhere to permitted limits.
According to him, since November 2003, TASMAC has relied almost exclusively on standard chemical analysis from the state laboratory in Guindy.
This test primarily verifies whether liquor samples meet the standard 42.8 per cent alcohol-by-volume (ABV) threshold to certify products fit for public sale. Wines range from 12 per cent to 15 per cent ABV, and beers range from five per cent to eight per cent ABV, he added.
He also said that health experts and consumer groups argue that relying solely on percentage testing is severely inadequate for modern food safety standards.
Sources from TASMAC added that there are about 250 local and other state liquor brands available in the corporation, which includes over 180 local brands of liquor, 43 local brands of Beer, three local brands of Wine, six other State brands of liquor, five other State Beer brand and eight other State brands of Wine. PTI SNR ROH
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