Tasmac Bottle Deposit Pilot in Egmore Records 47,000 Returns, Pays Rs 25 Lakh

A pilot deposit-return initiative for glass liquor bottles, launched at a Tasmac outlet in Egmore, has registered 46,992 customer return transactions and disbursed Rs 25.26 lakh in instant digital refunds as of August 24. The QR-based project aims to improve the recovery and recycling of used packaging at high-volume retail locations across Chennai.

The pilot scheme was introduced earlier this year at the Egmore outlet and was subsequently expanded to two additional Tasmac locations in the city. According to the latest data released from the pilot, a total of 1,096 unique consumers have taken part in the programme. The figures reflect a sharp increase in overall public participation compared to an earlier benchmark recorded on July 9.

Under the operational framework of the system, customers pay a designated deposit on QR-tagged glass liquor bottles at the time of purchase. After consuming the contents, customers can bring the empty bottles back to dedicated collection counters at the participating retail outlets. Reverse vending machines inspect and evaluate each returned bottle before accepting it.

Once a bottle is verified and accepted by the machine, it drops directly into a collection bag, and the customer receives their deposit back immediately through an instant digital refund. The collected glass containers are subsequently retrieved by authorised scrap vendors operating under Tasmac to undergo further processing.

The state agency is testing the initiative as a potential model to streamline glass packaging recovery before considering whether to expand the deposit-return system across Tamil Nadu's wider retail network.

Local vendors in the neighbourhood have observed positive customer engagement with the automated setup. Murali Rathinam, a supplier at Albert Bar in Egmore, stated that the reverse vending machine has made the return procedure simple and direct for patrons. Rathinam noted that customers brought their used alcohol bottles to the Tasmac shop to claim their refunds, where the machine evaluated the bottles, accepted them into collection bags, and issued instant digital returns on the spot.