CHENNAI: In an interesting exchange in the Assembly on Tuesday, DMK MLA S Inigo Irudayaraj, representing Tiruchy East Assembly constituency, expressed dissatisfaction over the lesser allocation of funds to his constituency compared to the funds allocated to the Tiruchy West constituency, represented by senior DMK leader and Minister for Municipal Administration KN Nehru.
Both the constituencies falls under Tiruchirappalli City Municipal Corporation(TCMC). Addressing the Assembly during the demand for grants for the municipal administration department, Irudayaraj pointed out Tiruchy West comprises 22 wards while his Trichy East has 23 wards, accounting for 36% of the total corporation area. He said over the past four years, Tiruchy East received Rs 370.15 crore, accounting for only 7.86% of the total Rs 4,808.43 crore budget of the TCMC.
He further added the general fund allocation stood at Rs 408 crore for Tiruchy West while it was only Rs 108 crore for Tiruchy East. He urged the government to ensure balanced funding in the coming year. He further highlighted the prevailing drinking water scarcity in his Tiruchy East Assembly constituency.
Later in his speech, though Nehru did not specifically answer the alleged disparity in fund allocation, he assured water supply issues in Tiruchy East would be resolved soon. He said a new 15-lakh-litre overhead tank in Marakkadai, which is expected to become operational in 10 days, would help ensure an equitable water supply across the constituency.