SIVAGANGA: Chief Minister MK Stalin on Saturday urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Governor RN Ravi to read the Economic Survey report, which was released by the union government on Thursday ahead of the union finance budget, before criticising the state government as its performance in several areas has been highly appreciated in the report.
Addressing a gathering at a government event at Karaikudi in Sivaganga district, Stalin said that the statistics referred by him in his speeches to highlight the state’s growth were not based on his imagination but on the information stated in the union government’s reports.
The performance of Tamil Nadu in encouraging entrepreneurship, creating high number of employment opportunities in manufacturing sector, especially for women, among others, has been appreciated even in the latest report, the CM said.
Criticising the centre for repealing the MGNREGA, which he said was the backbone of the rural economy, Stalin flayed the centre for introducing the VB-G RAM G Act. “They are not able to provide 50 workdays under MGNREGA. How will it be possible to provide 125 workdays under the new law,” he asked, mocking that they could have simply announced 365 workdays under the new Act, instead of 125 days.
EPS just copied & pasted DMK schemes, says CM
Till last year, Rs 12,000 crore was provided to 65 lakh families under MGNREGA in the state. The union government must repeal the new Act, else they would be forced to repeal it with people’s support similar to the three farm laws, he added.
Attacking AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami, the DMK president said they were the ones who had failed to fulfill their own election promises during their previous tenures in 2011 and 2016. Referring to a few unfulfilled promises of AIADMK, he said the Chennai-Kanniyakumari coastal road, aero park for southern Tamil Nadu, and free bus for those aged 58 and above were part of their 2011 election promises, while cell phones for all ration card holders, free wifi in significant places were part of the 2016 manifesto of the AIADMK.
“Palaniswami has just copied and pasted the DMK schemes and announced new election promises. However, the DMK fulfilled its election manifesto, such as free bus travel for women, Rs 1,000 financial assistance for women heads, and decades-old demand of pension for government employees, among others,” the CM said, pointing out that those were promises some had claimed would be “impossible” for the government to fulfill. Stalin said that he has a lot of dream projects for the state, and they would be fulfilled in the second term of the Dravidian model government.
The CM inaugurated buildings for agriculture college and research institute at Kanadukathan, law college in Karaikudi, and mini Tidel park in Karaikudi, and 49 completed projects worth Rs 2,777 crore in the district. He also laid foundation stones for 28 new projects, and handed over welfare assistance to 15,453 beneficiaries. Ministers including Thangam Thennarasu, KR Periakaruppan, RS Raja Kannappan, former union minister P Chidambaram, were among those present at the events.