CHENNAI: Chief Minister and DMK president M K Stalin, in a letter on Thursday, urged his cadres to involve MGNREGA beneficiaries in the party’s agitation announced on March 29, demanding the release of Rs 4,034 crore due in wages by the union government. The DMK has planned agitations at two places in every union across the state.
Stalin said, “Like any other welfare scheme, the state had been implementing the MGNREGA effectively. In line with its tendency of punishing the best-performing states, the centre has not released funds under the scheme.”
He also recalled his letter to the PM on January 13 urging the release of the dues and the meeting of state finance minister Thangam Thennarasu with union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman on January 27 in New Delhi on the same.
“Our party MPs, in Parliament, had underlined that poor workers in rural areas are being deceived. Our coalition parties’ MPs also spoke about it. However, the centre has maintained that TN has been given more funds than UP,” he wrote.