The Madras High Court on Monday warned Tamil Nadu State Marketing Corporation (Tasmac) that it would order closure of all retail liquor shops operated in the hill stations if it does not come up with an effective solution by April 25 to prevent its customers from littering the glass bottles in forest areas thereby endangering the life of wild animals.
Justices V. Bharathidasan and N. Sathish Kumar suggested the Tasmac to come up with an attractive buy back scheme by which the customers could be given an incentive of around ₹10 for returning the bottles. They said that maintaining kiosks for returning the bottles without any monetary gain might not prove to be as effective as offering a small incentive.
Amicus curiae M. Santhanaraman told the court that many customers of Tasmac in the Nilgiris and Kodaikanal take the liquor bottles for consumption inside forest areas. They leave the bottles behind causing threat to the animals, especially the elephants. When the pachyderms step on those glass pieces and get injured, they die within three months due to the infection, he said.
