Assam's five distilleries now have the permission from the state government to mass-produce alcohol-based hand sanitizer in the fight against the COVID-19.

The distilleries are, Sanitary distilleries and bottling plant, Boragaon (Guwahati), Associated Alcohol & Beverage company, Garmur (Jorhat), Surma distillery Pvt. Ltd. (Silchar, Cachar), Brahmaputra Biochem Pvt. Ltd. (Chaigaon, Kamrup) and Radiant Manufacturers Private Limited (Karbi Anglong).

The move comes as panic buying bypeople resulted in stocks of masks and sanitizers disappearing from themarkets. They are being sold at exorbitant prices in areas where the suppliesexist.

The government said the decision would empower the administration to regulate the production, quality, distribution, etc., of masks and hand sanitizers and smoothen the sale and availability of these items. It will also enable authorities to carry out operations against speculators.