TVK govt presents first Budget in Assembly, Fin Min hails Vijay for halting kickbacks in tenders

Chennai, Tamil Nadu Finance Minister N Marie Wilson presented the Tamil Victory-Kumar (TVK) government's inaugural Budget in the Assembly on Wednesday, praising Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay for several initiatives. These include halting the practice of "cut" in tenders for certain parties and individuals, allotting over ₹1300 crore for two gold assistance schemes and asserting steps to extricate Tamil Nadu from a "financial crunch."

Wilson emphasized the TVK government's opposition to the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET), urging the Center to abandon the qualifying test in favor of the traditional method of medical admissions based on class 12 marks. The minister announced a budget allocation of ₹812 crore for the "gold coin, silk saree scheme" for women beneficiaries, providing eight grams of gold and a silk saree to brides during their wedding.

Additionally, ₹560 crore was allocated for the gold ring scheme for newborns in government hospitals, honoring the electoral promise of Vijay-led TVK. The Haj subsidy for initial pilgrims through the Haj Committee has been raised to ₹35,000 from ₹25,000, and the government pledged to bring the state out of financial distress. Wilson detailed several reformative steps, such as transparency in tenders and modernization plans for schools, with ₹300 crore earmarked for the current year.

The minister also set aside ₹125 crore for the ultra-modern government residential school scheme named after former Chief Minister K Kamaraj and allocated ₹7 crore for the "Drug-free TN" plan. The Budget highlighted the TVK regime's accomplishments, including the closure of 717 liquor outlets, 200 units of free power to domestic consumers, and efforts towards women empowerment, social justice, and housing for all.