Sops expected as Stalin government gears up to present first budget on August 13

CHENNAI: The first budget of the state government headed by Chief Minister MK Stalin will be presented to the Tamil Nadu Assembly on August 13. Since the previous AIADMK government had presented a formal budget for 2021-22 already, the DMK government will be presenting a revised budget for 2021-22.

Finance Minister Palanivel Thiaga Rajan will be presenting the budget. Rajan has said that he would be writing the bulk of the budget speech himself, unlike former ministers who relied on IAS officers.  

Ahead of the revised budget, a white paper on the state finances is expected to be released within a few days. From this year, the state government will be presenting a separate budget for the agriculture department.

Since this is the first budget of the DMK government and comes just ahead of the elections to rural local bodies in nine newly carved districts, there are likely to be a lot of popular announcements to fulfill the electoral promises of the party. The announcements may include Rs 1,000 per month to women heads of families.