Tamil Nadu CM Vijay’s election promises will cost Rs 1 lakh crore annually. This is 50% of the state’s tax revenue, which is expected to increase the financial burden and debt. Despite this, Vijay has already implemented 3 promises.
Chennai: Thalapathy Vijay has taken over as the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, but now a debate has arisen on whether he will be able to fulfill his election promises? In fact, to implement all the promises made in his manifesto, a huge amount of Rs 1 lakh crore will be required every year.
When his party came to power, Vijay had made many big promises like giving Rs 2,500 every month to women, Rs 4,000 to unemployed graduates, Rs 2,500 to diploma holders, 6 free LPG cylinders a year, Rs 15,000 annually to mothers of school girls, 8 grams of gold and silk saree to married girls, and 1 gold ring to every child born. Out of these, he has confirmed three of these promises on the very first day. This includes 200 units of free electricity, formation of a special force for the safety of women and setting up of units to stop drug smuggling across the state.
There will be a burden of ₹1 lakh crore
Economists estimate that if all these promises are fully implemented, the burden on the state exchequer will be around Rs 1 lakh crore annually. This figure is about 50% of the state’s total tax revenue (Rs 2.1 lakh crore) for 2024-25. Over a period of five years, more than Rs 4.5 lakh crore can be spent on these schemes.
Economists warned
Madras School of Economics Director N.R. Bhanumurthy warned, ‘It is very important to take some steps before implementing these schemes. First of all, beneficiaries have to be identified, existing schemes have to be audited and expenses have to be rationalized. It also has to be seen whether the new schemes are repeating the old schemes. If the expenses are not controlled, there will be huge pressure on the state exchequer.
At the same time, former director of Madras School of Economics and senior economist K. Shanmugam said, ‘The interim budget has already been prepared within the debt limit. According to Finance Commission rules, the state’s fiscal deficit can be kept at only about 3% of GSDP. There is no scope for much change in this. At present the fiscal deficit of Tamil Nadu is between 2.8% to 3%. In such a situation, there is no scope for spending much. More than Rs 18,000 to 20,000 crore will be required annually just for Vijay’s cash-rich schemes. A large part of the state’s expenditure goes towards salaries, pensions of government employees and loan interest. In such a situation, the debt burden on the state will increase further due to new schemes.
As soon as he took charge as Tamil Nadu CM, Vijay on Sunday signed files on providing 200 units of free electricity to domestic consumers, setting up of a special force for the safety of women and creation of anti-drug smuggling units across the state. Households that consume up to 500 units of electricity in two months will get 200 units of free electricity every month. At the same time, the old scheme of 100 units of free electricity every two months will continue for those who use more than 500 units of electricity.
A special task force named ‘Singa Penn’ will be formed to increase self-confidence and protect women. ‘Singa Pen’ means ‘lioness’, and the word is generally used for a brave woman. Similarly, a total of 65 anti-narcotics task force units will be formed in Tamil Nadu to curb drug-related crimes. There will be one unit in every district and the remaining units will be set up in nine major cities of the state.
Some big promises of Vijay…
- Health insurance of ₹25 lakh to every family
- 8 grams of gold and silk saree to the new bride
- A gold ring for every child born
- ₹4,000 every month to unemployed graduates
- ₹ 2,000 assistance to diploma holders
- Loan up to ₹25 lakh to young entrepreneurs