CHENNAI: The AIADMK executive committee which met on Monday decided to urge the Centre to expeditiously disburse Rs 23,763.36 crore towards GST dues and funds pending under 13 heads for various schemes, besides grants. The amount includes Rs 4,073 crore GST due, Rs 16,505.32 crore towards funds for various schemes and Rs 3,185.04 crore grants. A resolution was adopted at the meeting which was held in the presence of Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami and Deputy Chief Minister O Panneerselvam and chaired by party presidium chairman E Madhusudanan. A total of 15 resolutions were adopted at the meeting.
Another resolution explained the relief measures initiated by the State government in view of the pandemic and the preventive measures being done and the huge need for funds for these works. It also urged the Centre to allocate sufficient funds for the works.
Panruti S Ramachandran, former Minister and close of associate of former Chief Minister MG Ramachandran, who was keeping away from party affairs for quite some time, attended the meeting. He moved a resolution reiterating the party’s conviction on the two-language formula. It said the policy was evolved after a deep study and not out of hatred towards any language. Learning an additional language which is not in use in the routine life of people would increase the burden on students.
A resolution on NEET charged that the Congress and the DMK, which were responsible for the introduction of the test, were now opposing it to derive political mileage. Stating that the AIADMK has been consistently opposing NEET from day one, the resolution said the party is firm on its stand till date. It also urged the Centre to scrap NEET.
The meeting also demanded that experts from Tamil Nadu be included in the committee constituted by the Centre to study the origin and evolution of Indian culture during the past 12 millennia. Yet another resolution condemned the renewed efforts of the Karnataka government for constructing a dam at Mekedatu.
The meeting also condoled the death of former President Pranab Mukherjee, former Governor of Uttar Pradesh Lalji Tandon, former Union Ministers Jaswant Singh, Minister of State for Railways Suresh Angadi, playback singers SP Balasubramanian and AL Raghavan, film director Visu, former State president of BJP KN Lakshmanan, Congress MP H Vasanthakumar and many others.
Deaths condoled
Deaths of MGR’s nephew MC Chandran, Tamil scholar Mannar Mannan and Ambedkar Makkal Iyakkam president V Balasundaram were also condoled
‘PM praised me for pandemic efforts’
According to sources, speaking about his chief ministerial stint at the meeting, Edappadi K Palaniswami told members that PM Narendra Modi had praised him and his government for good governance and efforts taken during the pandemic. The AIADMK party headquarters on Avvai Shanmugam Salai came alive after a gap of nearly four years, as large number of cadre gathered for the meeting. A section of them wore masks with OPS’ picture, while another displayed pictures of Palaniswami.