Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin said Opposition leader Edappadi K. Palaniswami, who accused the DMK government of “wasting money on welfare schemes and projects,” should explain what schemes and projects he was referring to.
“We want to know whether it is the Kalaignar Magalir Urimai scheme or the morning breakfast scheme; which scheme is money being wasted on,” he asked at a government event in Sivaganga on Wednesday (January 22, 2025).
Seeking clarification on the promises that the DMK government did not fulfil — according to Mr. Palaniswami — since it took charge, Mr. Stalin said, of the 505 promises his party had made during the 2021 Assembly election, about 389 had already been fulfilled.
The AIADMK is so keen on pointing out the DMK’s unfulfilled promises, but it should also remember that in the last 10 years of its rule, it could only make Tamil Nadu a revenue-deficit State, the CM charged. The sorry state of Tamil Nadu then was despite the AIADMK government being in a close relationship with the BJP government at the Centre, he noted. “Its connection with the Union government was only to sustain its own power and position,” he said.
Responding to Mr. Palaniswami’s criticism, he said the DMK government knew what was good for the people and what was not. “When Mr. Palaniswami sits in a dark room and counts the number of upcoming new moon days, we keep thinking about people and their welfare,” he said.
‘Were AIADMK’s promises fulfilled?’
Listing out the promises made by the AIADMK from 2011-2016 — like the Chennai-Kanniyakumari coastal road, granting 50% subsidy to women for buying scooters, mobile phones for all ration card-holders, free wi-fi in public places, aeropark in southern Tamil Nadu, among others — Mr. Stalin questioned whether any of these were fulfilled in the party’s 10 years of governance.
“People need not be fed with false information to downgrade the DMK government, as they know how to measure the performance of both the governments based on the benefits and facilities they are enjoying,” he said.
Despite the Union government’s efforts to stall the initiatives taken by the Tamil Nadu government, various projects were being implemented by the State for the welfare of people, Mr. Stalin said. “Even when the Union government does not provide funds for its own projects, we, using State government funds, keep the projects running,” he said.
At the event, the CM inaugurated 46 new projects in Sivaganga district worth ₹376.49 crore, laid foundation stones for 33 new projects, and distributed welfare measures worth ₹161 crores to 53,039 beneficiaries. He also laid stones for the construction of the statues of the Marudhu brothers and poet Mudiyarasan.
On his way back from Sivaganga, Mr. Stalin attended the 100th anniversary celebrations of Tamil Nadu Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Madurai.
Published - January 22, 2025 03:50 pm IST
